Barcelona Marathon 2025 breaks men's and women's records 

The 2025 Barcelona Marathon saw a record-breaking turnout on Sunday, with 27,000 runners crossing the starting line to run through the sunlit streets of the Catalan capital.

Ethiopian runner, Tesfaye Deriba made history, when he crossed the finish line after 2 hours, 4 minutes and 13 seconds, fittingly, under the Arc de Triompf on the central Passeig Lluís Companys.

With this result, Deriba set a new record for the Barcelona Marathon, shaving almost a minute off last year’s record of 2:05:01 set by Abraham Tadesse.

Deriba told media through Tadesse, who acted as a translator, that although he had been “optimistic”, he didn’t “expect this time”, adding “I’m very happy.”

Deriba was followed by Kenyan runners Cornelius Kibet (2:04:54), and Enock Onchari (2:02:20).

The women’s race also saw a new record, with Kenyan Sharon Chelimo crossing the finish line in 2:19:33, knocking 11 seconds off the previous record set by Ethiopian Zeineba Yimer in 2023.

Chelimo was followed closely by Yebrgual Melese (2:20:47) and Linet Masai (2:21:01).

Of the 27,000 participants, 60% came from outside of Spain, and as in last year’s edition, 25% of the runners were female.  

World record at Barcelona Half Marathon

The record-breaking streak wasn’t just limited to Sunday’s race.

In February, the Barcelona Half Marathon witnessed a new world record when Ugandan runner Jacob Kiplimo finished the course in just 56 minutes and 42 seconds.

The previous world record of 57:31 was set by Ethiopian Yomif Kejelcha at the Valencia Half Marathon in 2024.
Beyond individual records, the half marathon also saw an unprecedented 30,000 participants, making it the second largest in Europe after Berlin, as well as the largest in Spain.