Photo note: Race-day images from the 2026 JTBC Seoul Marathon are not yet available for editorial use. The feature image shows Selemon Barega — 2020 Tokyo Olympics 10,000m champion and elder brother of today’s winner Mikiyas Barega Sirtaga — at the 2016 IAAF World U20 Championships in Bydgoszcz. This post will be updated with race imagery as cleared photos become available.
Selemon Barega won a 10,000m gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics. On Sunday morning in Seoul, his 21-year-old brother Mikiyas did something arguably more audacious: he won a marathon on his first attempt, beating Kenyan specialists carrying personal bests five to six minutes faster, on a rain-soaked course that nobody wanted to race fast on.
The 26th edition of the JTBC Seoul Marathon delivered a genuine upset in the men’s elite race. Mikiyas Barega Sirtaga crossed the line at Olympic Park Peace Plaza in 2 hours 10 minutes flat, holding off compatriot Abebaw Muniye Dessie (2:10:08) and Kenya’s Mike Chematot (2:10:28). Around 30,000 runners completed the full marathon and 10K across a Seoul that had been raining since early morning.
- Race: 2026 JTBC Seoul Marathon (26th edition)
- Date: Sunday, November 1, 2026
- Full marathon course: Gwanghwamun Square to Olympic Park Peace Plaza (new route, 2026)
- 10K course: World Cup Park, Mapo-gu to Yeouido Park
- Conditions: Rain from early morning, 7–9°C — 2 to 3 degrees colder than race day 2025
- Field: ~100 elite athletes and 30,000 mass-race runners
Mikiyas Barega Wins on Debut — Men’s Elite Results
Going into Sunday, the race looked like a Kenyan procession. The pre-race field carried a cluster of sub-2:06 personal bests, and the new Gwanghwamun course — flatter than the old Sangam layout, with fewer uphill sections — had been flagged as quicker. Rain changed the calculation entirely.
In those conditions, Barega’s inexperience at the distance became irrelevant. He ran controlled, moved through the field in the latter half and had something left when it mattered.
“I am so happy to win on my first attempt,” he said at the finish. “I was in good condition, so I sprinted in the latter half.”
| Pos | Athlete | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Mikiyas Barega Sirtaga | Ethiopia | 2:10:00 |
| 2nd | Abebaw Muniye Dessie | Ethiopia | 2:10:08 |
| 3rd | Mike Chematot | Kenya | 2:10:28 |
On the slow winning time: The 2:10:00 winning mark sits well behind 2025 winner Nicholas Kitundu’s 2:05:32 and the course record of 2:05:29 set by Shifera Tamru in 2019. Rain throughout the race and a wet road surface were the primary factors. Hwang Young-jo, director of the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation’s marathon team, said: “The course for this year’s competition seems a bit easier than last year’s. If the weather had been good, I think we would have had good records.” The 2:10 winning time reflects the conditions, not the course.
The Barega Name, and the 180km Weeks Behind It
Mikiyas Barega Sirtaga is the younger brother of Selemon Barega — the Ethiopian who won the 10,000m at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and who remains one of track’s most recognisable names. At 21, Mikiyas came into Seoul with one significant half marathon to his name: a 1:01:34 at the Barcelona Half Marathon in February 2026. A solid mark, but nothing that advertised a debut marathon win over a field of this calibre.
The foundation is less surprising when you hear how he trains. “My brother trains really hard. I trained by watching him,” Mikiyas said. “I run about 180 kilometres a week around Addis Ababa.” He came to athletics seriously only in his second year of high school, running as a hobby before that. Whatever the starting point, the progression is steep.
Korea’s Own Debut Story: Hwang Bo-hanbin
The theme of first-timers winning carried into the Korean men’s open category. Hwang Bo-hanbin, 22, from Korea National Sport University, took the domestic men’s open title in 2:16:45 — also his first full marathon.
“My plan was just to finish within 2 hours and 20 minutes,” Hwang said, “but I am satisfied to have finished in the 2:16 range. The course felt somewhat difficult, but I was able to overcome it by maintaining my pace until the end.”
Wheelchair and Masters Results
| Category | Athlete | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wheelchair (Men) | Akafumi Ohashi | Japan | 46:10 |
| Masters (Men) | Tashiro Kawano | Japan | 2:19:19 |
| Masters (Women) | Noh Yu-yeon | Korea | 2:40:04 |
Six athletes competed in the wheelchair category. Ohashi’s 46:10 secured the win. In the Masters division, Japan’s Tashiro Kawano took the men’s title and Korea’s Noh Yu-yeon won the women’s.
Women’s Race: A Fall, a Finish and a Target for 2027
The Korean women’s open race was disrupted almost from the start. The winner — family name Jung — described a rough morning: “My body was stiff until the 5km mark, and then I even fell at the 10km mark. My balance was off, so it was difficult to pull myself back up.” She finished, and arrived at the other end of it with a clear sense of what she is building toward. She is already targeting a time “in the 20-minute range next year.”
Women’s full results: Complete women’s open results from the official JTBC timing system are pending. This dispatch will be updated when confirmed data is available. Source for race details: JoongAng Ilbo, November 1, 2026.
The New Course: From Gwanghwamun to Olympic Park
This was the first year the full marathon started at Gwanghwamun Square rather than Sangam World Cup Park, a change JTBC made to reduce downtown traffic disruption. The new 2026 route runs through Sungnyemun, Euljiro 3-ga, Biudang Bridge, the Jongno-gu Office intersection, Sinseol-dong Station, Gunja Station, Konkuk University Station, Seokchon Lake Intersection, Hagyeoul Station and Suseo IC before finishing at South Gate 2 of Olympic Park in Songpa-gu.
On paper it is a faster layout. On Sunday it was a wet one. The race it produced — tight at the front, full of debut performances and a weather narrative that cut PB bids short — was compelling anyway.
For the full course guide, travel logistics and registration details for 2027, see our JTBC Seoul Marathon race guide.