Alemayehu Shumye facts for kids

Alemayehu Shumye Tafere (born in 1988 – died on January 11, 2013, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia) was a talented Ethiopian long-distance runner. He was especially good at running marathons, which are very long races, usually about 42 kilometers (26 miles).

Alemayehu Shumye Tafere: A Young Running Star

From Nazret to Addis Ababa

Alemayehu was born in a place called Nazret. He started taking running seriously in 2004. This was when he moved to Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia. He hoped to become as successful as the famous Ethiopian runner Haile Gebrselassie.

His First Marathon Wins

Alemayehu ran his very first marathon in 2008. It was the Marathon del Riso in Vercelli, Italy. He won the race with a time of 2 hours, 14 minutes, and 33 seconds. That same year, he ran two more marathons. He won the Warsaw Marathon in Poland, setting a new course record and his personal best time of 2 hours, 11 minutes, and 50 seconds. Then, in November, he also won the Beirut Marathon in Lebanon, breaking that course record too.

Continuing His Success

In 2009, Alemayehu finished tenth at the Zurich Marathon. He then greatly improved his personal best time at the Frankfurt Marathon. He ran the race in 2 hours, 8 minutes, and 46 seconds, finishing in fifth place. He was the only runner not from Kenya to be in the top eight finishers.

In January 2010, he was among the leaders at the Xiamen Marathon in China. He ended up finishing in fifth place. The next year, he returned to the Xiamen Marathon and took third place. His time was 2 hours, 9 minutes, and 58 seconds. This was his second time running a marathon in under 2 hours and 10 minutes.

Later in 2011, he finished in the top five at the Rotterdam Marathon. Again, he ran the race in less than two hours and ten minutes. In October, he ran the Ljubljana Marathon. Six runners, including Alemayehu, ran faster than the old course record. He finished in fifth place. On July 1, 2012, Alemayehu won the Gold Coast Marathon in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia.

A Sad Farewell

Alemayehu Shumye Tafere passed away at the age of 24. He died in a car accident in Addis Ababa on January 11, 2013.