20th edition of marathon takes place under torrential rain

The 20th edition of the Rome marathon on 23 March was dominated by Ethiopian runners, with Shume Hailu Legese winning the men's race and Ayelu Lemma Geda winning the women's event.

Legese finished with a time of 2:09:47, ahead of compatriot Sisay Jisa Mekonnen (2:11:20) and Kenyan Leonard Kipkoech Langat (2:14:08).

Ayelu Geda won the women's race with a time of 2:34:49, ahead of Moroccan Janat Hanane (2:38:09) and Italy's Emma Quaglia (2:43:23).

A record number of over 19,000 runners took part in this year's race, which began and ended at the Colosseum, while 80,000 joined the 5-km fun run which finished at the Circus Maximus.

The number of non-Italian athletes increased dramatically this year too: over 8,000 runners from 122 different countries, compared to last year's 6,000 runners from 81 countries.

Photo Corriere della Sera