Renowned former long-distance runner & founder of the Great Run Ethiopia, Haile Gebresilassie, said the 10kms road race is the starting point for the success of famous athletes.
Saying that the race attracts several domestic and foreign athletes as well as the diplomatic community, Gebresilassie underscored that the Great Ethiopian Run has also been playing key role in building Ethiopia’s image and promote the country’s tourism besides its contribution to the advancement of athletics.
Held under the theme "For Every Child, Nutrition," this year's event, attracted renowned athletes from across the world.
The event was also devoted to commemorating the 50th anniversary of the discovery of Lucy.
Lucy, also known as Dinkʼinesh (which translates to 'you are marvelous'), consists of several hundred fossilized bones that make up approximately 40 percent of the skeleton of a female member of the hominin species Australopithecus afarensis. This remarkable specimen was found in 1974 in Ethiopia, at the Hadar site within the Awash Valley of the Afar Triangle, by Donald Johanson, a paleoanthropologist from the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
The 24th edition of the Great Ethiopian Run International 10-kilometer road race took place today in Addis Ababa, drawing over 50,000 participants.
Lucy's discovery, 50,000 people participated in this year's Great Ethiopian Run international 10Km, which is organized in partnership with Ethiopia's Ministry of Tourism.