Tigst Assefa

Tigst Assefa Tessema (Amharic: ትእግስት አሰፋ; Oromo: Tigist Asaffaa Tasammaa; born 3 December 1996) is an Ethiopian long-distance runner and the former world record holder in the women's marathon. She has won three top-tier World Marathon Majors, two in Berlin and one in London. A former 800 meters specialist, Tigst switched to road races in 2018 and ran her first marathon in 2022.

At the age of 16, she won the bronze medal in the 800 meters at the 2013 African Junior Championships. She finished fourth at the senior African Championships the following year, and then represented Ethiopia in the event at the 2016 Rio Olympics aged 19. Tigst ran then the third-fastest female marathon in history at the 2022 Berlin Marathon and obliterated the world record by 2 minutes and 11 seconds at the 2023 Berlin Marathon, on 24 September, with a time of 2 hours 11 minutes and 53 seconds, becoming the first woman to break the 2:14, 2:13, and 2:12 barriers in a marathon. Her world record has since been broken by Ruth Chepng'etich, who ran 2 hours 9 minutes and 56 seconds at the 2024 Chicago Marathon on 13 October.