SIMBU DELIVERS TANZANIA’S FIRST WORLD ATHLETICS GOLD IN THRILLING TOKYO MARATHON FINISH

Alphonce Felix Simbu etched his name in history on Sunday by winning the men’s marathon at the 2025 World Athletics Championships, earning Tanzania its first-ever World Championships gold medal.
The 33-year-old outpaced Germany’s Amanal Petros in a dramatic sprint to the tape, claiming victory by a razor-thin 0.03 seconds. Simbu stopped the clock at 2 hours 9 minutes 48 seconds after 42.195km of racing in hot and humid Tokyo conditions. Italy’s Iliass Aouani took the bronze medal.
Simbu, who won marathon bronze at the 2017 World Championships, stayed patient as a large lead pack gradually thinned. With two kilometres to go he surged alongside Petros, the pair locked stride for stride until the final metres. A photo finish confirmed the Tanzanian’s historic triumph.
“This is not just my victory—it is Tanzania’s victory,” Simbu said after the race. “We have waited a long time for this moment.”
His win marks a breakthrough for Tanzanian athletics, which had never before claimed gold at a global track-and-field showpiece. The dramatic finish will be remembered as one of the tightest in World Championships marathon history.