Zersenay Tadese

In this Eritrean name, the name Tadese is a patronymic, and the person should be referred by the given name, Zersenay.
Zersenay Tadese
Zersenay at the 2009 World Championships
Personal information
NationalityEritrean
Born (1982-02-08) 8 February 1982 (age 42)
Adi Bana, Ethiopia [1][2]
Height1.60 m (5 ft 3 in)[2]
Weight54.431 kg (120 lb) (2023)
Sport
SportAthletics
Event(s)10,000 metres, half marathon
Achievements and titles
Personal bests
Medal record
Representing  Eritrea
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 2004 Athens 10,000 m
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 2009 Berlin 10,000 m
World Cross Country Championships
Gold medal – first place 2007 Mombasa Senior race
Silver medal – second place 2006 Fukuoka Long team
Silver medal – second place 2005 Saint-Etienne Long race
Bronze medal – third place 2009 Amman Senior race
Bronze medal – third place 2009 Amman Senior team
Bronze medal – third place 2008 Edinburgh Senior race
Bronze medal – third place 2004 Brussels Long team
World Half Marathon Championships
Gold medal – first place 2012 Kavarna Individual
Gold medal – first place 2009 Birmingham Individual
Gold medal – first place 2008 Rio de Janeiro Individual
Gold medal – first place 2007 Udine Individual
Gold medal – first place 2006 Debrecen (20km) Individual
Silver medal – second place 2010 Nanning Individual
All-Africa Games
Gold medal – first place 2007 Algiers 10,000 m
Gold medal – first place 2015 Brazzaville Half Marathon

Zersenay Tadese Habtesilase[nb][4] (Tigrinya: ዘርእሰናይ ታደሰ; born 8 February 1982) is a retired Eritrean long-distance track and road running athlete. He held the men's half marathon world record from 2010 to 2018. His bronze medal in the 10,000 metres at the 2004 Athens Olympics made him the first ever Eritrean Olympic medallist, and his 20-km title at the 2006 IAAF World Road Running Championships also made him the country's first athlete to win at a world championship event.[5][6] He does not use a sprint finish to win races; his strategy relies on a combination of efficient running and fast pace setting.

Zersenay ("Tadese" is his father's name) has found most of his success in the half marathon, with four consecutive victories in the World Half Marathon Championships from 2006 to 2009 (with a 2006 20 km edition), a silver medal in 2010 and a fifth title in 2012. His 5 titles are a record. He set a world record at the Lisbon Half Marathon in 2010.

He has also excelled in cross country running, winning a gold, a silver, and two bronze medals in the long-distance race over five IAAF World Cross Country Championships. He is a four-time Olympian (2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016).

In 2009, Zersenay became only the second man (after Paul Tergat) to win three World Championship medals over three different surfaces in the same year, winning World Cross Country bronze, 10,000 metres World Championship silver on the track, and gold in road running at the World Half Marathon Championships. He is a popular public figure in his home country; 2500 guests attended his wedding to Merhawit Solomon, which was broadcast live on Eritrean television. His brother, Kidane Tadese, is also a professional distance runner.

In 2016, he was chosen to be part of Nike's Breaking2 team to try to break 2 hours for the marathon and finished in 2:06:51.[7]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Focus was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Zersenay Tadesse". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020.
  3. ^ a b c d e f IAAF. "Athlete profile for Zersenay Tadese".
  4. ^ "Zersenay Tadese". Olympedia. OLYMadMen. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Surfaces was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference FirstWC was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Burgess, Matt. "If you missed Nike's two-hour marathon attempt you can relive it here". Retrieved 9 April 2018.