Ethiopia
2023
Nine medals, all of them distance — a women's 10,000m sweep inside 1.13 seconds, a marathon one-two, and two world records in a single season.
Ethiopia won nine medals at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest — two gold, four silver, three bronze — and every one came from 1500m or longer.
This is the Ethiopian 2023 season told through Budapest: the women's 10,000m podium sweep, the marathon one-two, Lamecha Girma's steeplechase silver and standing world record, what has happened to these runners since, and the Adidas Ethiopia Pro Elite 2023 kit.
Part of our Season Series — one year at a time. The full national story is in The History of Athletics in Ethiopia. Jump to the 2023 kit or browse the collection.
- Championship
- World Championships, Budapest, 19–27 August 2023
- Medals
- 9 — 2 gold, 4 silver, 3 bronze
- Medal table
- 6th — 2nd among African nations, behind Kenya
- The sweep
- Women's 10,000m — gold, silver, bronze in 1.13 seconds
- The one-two
- Women's marathon — Beriso gold, Gebreslase silver
- All distance
- Every one of the 9 medals came at 1500m or longer
- Record still standing
- Girma's steeplechase WR 7:52.11 (June 2023)
- Kit
- Adidas Ethiopia Pro Elite 2023 — 3 pieces in the archive
The 2023 season in short
Ethiopia's 2023 season had one stage above all others: nine days in Budapest. The team came home with nine medals — two gold, four silver, three bronze — sixth on the table and second among African nations behind Kenya. Every one of the nine came from 1500m or longer. It was the purest distance haul of any nation at the championships.
Two moments defined it. On the opening night the Ethiopian women swept the 10,000m podium, gold, silver and bronze inside 1.13 seconds. A week later, Amane Beriso and Gotytom Gebreslase went one-two in the marathon. The women alone won seven of the nine medals.
Budapest: a sweep and a one-two
The championships opened with a statement. In the women's 10,000m, Gudaf Tsegay won in 31:27.18, Letesenbet Gidey took silver 0.98 seconds back and Ejgayehu Taye bronze — a full Ethiopian podium sweep, the whole thing decided in just over a second, as the chart below shows.
Lamecha Girma anchored the men. He took steeplechase silver in 8:05.44 behind Morocco's Soufiane El Bakkali — and he arrived in Budapest already holding the world record, the 7:52.11 he had run in Paris that June, which still stands today.
The season had a second peak beyond Budapest. Three weeks after the championships, on 17 September in Eugene, Tsegay ran 14:00.21 for a 5000m world record that stood for nearly two years, until Beatrice Chebet broke 14:00 in 2025. In one season Ethiopia produced a 10,000m sweep, a marathon one-two and two world records.
It also came with an asterisk written by Kenya. Faith Kipyegon swept the 1500m/5000m double in Budapest — relegating Tsegay to 13th in the 5000m and Diribe Welteji to 1500m silver — so Ethiopia answered by owning the 10,000m and the marathon. The rivalry ran through the whole meet.
Every Ethiopian medal in Budapest
Nine medals — two gold, four silver, three bronze, every one of them at 1500m or longer:
- GoldGudaf Tsegay — Women's 10,000m31:27.18
- GoldAmane Beriso — Women's marathon2:24:23
- SilverLetesenbet Gidey — Women's 10,000m31:28.16
- SilverDiribe Welteji — Women's 1500m3:55.69
- SilverLamecha Girma — 3000m steeplechase8:05.44
- SilverGotytom Gebreslase — Women's marathon2:24:34
- BronzeEjgayehu Taye — Women's 10,000m31:28.31
- BronzeSelemon Barega — Men's 10,000m27:52.72
- BronzeLeul Gebresilase — Men's marathon2:09:19
The night that set the tone was the women's 10,000m. Here is how close the sweep was:
The women's 10,000m podium — data table
| Medal | Athlete | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | Gudaf Tsegay | 31:27.18 | — |
| Silver | Letesenbet Gidey | 31:28.16 | +0.98 |
| Bronze | Ejgayehu Taye | 31:28.31 | +1.13 |
The kit: Adidas Ethiopia Pro Elite 2023
The Ethiopian team raced Budapest in the Adidas Ethiopia Pro Elite 2023 cycle — the race-issued federation kit made for the athletes on the team, not a retail line.
What “Pro Elite” means here. Pro Elite pieces are issued to the athletes through the team channel: cut, weight and finishing specified for competition, in a run limited to what the squad receives. When a piece leaves that channel it is not replaced.
The 2023 Ethiopia rail in the archive is small — a few pieces from that cycle, cut for the distance squad. What is here is shown below; when a piece sells, it is gone.
Ethiopia Pro Elite 2023
The pieces we hold from the Adidas Ethiopia Pro Elite 2023 cycle — the race-issued kit from the season of the Budapest sweep. A small rail, and it does not come back: in stock first, sold-out pieces stay visible so you can see what the cycle contained.
How many medals did Ethiopia win at the 2023 World Athletics Championships?
Nine: two gold, four silver and three bronze, finishing sixth on the medal table and second among African nations behind Kenya. Every medal came from 1500m or longer.
Did Ethiopia sweep the 10,000m in Budapest 2023?
Yes — the women's 10,000m. Gudaf Tsegay (gold, 31:27.18), Letesenbet Gidey (silver) and Ejgayehu Taye (bronze) took the whole podium, decided inside 1.13 seconds. Ethiopia also went one-two in the women's marathon through Beriso and Gebreslase.
What did Gudaf Tsegay win in 2023?
The 10,000m world title in Budapest — not the 5000m, where Faith Kipyegon beat her and she finished 13th. Three weeks later Tsegay set a 5000m world record of 14:00.21, which stood until Beatrice Chebet broke 14:00 in 2025.
Does Lamecha Girma still hold the steeplechase world record?
Yes. Girma's 3000m steeplechase world record of 7:52.11, set in Paris in June 2023, still stands in July 2026. In Budapest that August he took steeplechase silver behind Soufiane El Bakkali.
What kit did Ethiopia wear in 2023?
The Adidas Ethiopia Pro Elite 2023 collection — the athlete-issued federation kit for that cycle. The archive holds a small number of pieces from it; the rail below shows what is in stock.
Sources and References
- Wikipedia — Ethiopia at the 2023 World Athletics Championships — the full 2G/4S/3B medal list and marks
- World Athletics — Budapest 2023 women's 10,000m report — the Ethiopian sweep: Tsegay 31:27.18, Gidey, Taye
- World Athletics — 3000m steeplechase world record, Girma 7:52.11 (Paris 2023) — the record that still stands in 2026
- World Athletics — Tsegay 5000m world record 14:00.21 (Eugene, Sept 2023) — the record that stood until Chebet 2025
- World Athletics — Chebet becomes first woman under 14:00 (5000m, July 2025) — the 13:58.06 that superseded Tsegay
- Wikipedia — 2023 World Championships women's marathon — the Ethiopian one-two: Beriso gold, Gebreslase silver