SEVILLE, Spain, February 25- Solomon Busiendich displayed imperious form to bag the men’s race during the 29th edition of Spain’s Maraton de Sevilla (Seville Marathon) competed in a new flat course in 2:10:14.
Busiendich pulled away and got a ‘smooth’ victory at the finish line on the same track of the Olympic Stadium that hosted the Athletics World Championship in 1999.
He went past the 35km with too much of a lead for Eritrean Yared Dagnaw Sharew to make up that was almost a two minute advantage before completing the winning procession in the event competed under sunny conditions.
Until the final two kilometres, Busiendich was running in sub-2:08, but he could not maintain the pace but he had done enough to bag the victory.
Sharew finished second in 2:12:37 with the winner’s compatriot Emmanuel Samal completing the podium in 2:13:10.
The first home runner across the tape was Javier Diaz Carretero, in seventh with the timer reading 2:15:34 in the event that registered 7,150 athletes.
Ethiopia’s Ehite Bizuayehu won the corresponding women’s race in 2:29:52, her personal best and her first victory in a marathon.
Running solo in the final kilometres after crossing the half marathon mark in 1:14, Bizuayehu led her compatriots Megersa Tafa and Wudnesh Nega to the podium sweep.