German marathon star Amanal Petros has claimed his first major international title. He secured gold at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham. This victory follows a challenging journey for the athlete.
Petros finished the men’s marathon in a record 2:09:11. He significantly broke away from the lead pack after 25 kilometers. No rival could match his pace.
Italian runner Pietro Riva finished just seven seconds behind. However, Petros maintained full control throughout the race. “I had everything under control,” Petros stated afterwards.
His journey to the top began in hardship. Amanal Petros fled the Eritrean-Ethiopian war as a teenager. He found a new home in Germany in early 2012.
Born in Eritrea in 1995, he moved to Ethiopia’s Tigray region as a child. There, he grew up with his two younger sisters. He began working in fields and tending animals from age five.
Petros arrived in Germany alone at 16, initially in asylum-seeker accommodation. He later started playing football. A club official soon noticed his remarkable speed.
This led him to a local athletics club. Months after arriving, Petros won his first 10-kilometer race by a significant margin. He was naturalized as a German citizen in 2015.
Petros has consistently moved closer to the international elite. In December 2025, he set a German marathon record with 2:04:03 in Valencia. Another national record followed in March for the Berlin Half Marathon.
The athlete faced heartbreak 11 months earlier. He narrowly missed gold by 0.03 seconds at the World Championships in Tokyo. “As a professional athlete, I simply have to accept that and look ahead,” Petros reflected then.
After his Birmingham triumph, Amanal Petros dedicated the gold medal to his mother. “She is my queen and my source of strength,” he emphasized. His mother lives over 5,000 kilometers away in the Tigray region.
The ongoing conflict in Tigray has created immense challenges. Petros went over two months without contact with his mother and sisters in late 2021. “It’s very hard,” he shared previously.
Running offers him crucial solace. “If I were to give up my sport, I would have lost everything,” Petros explained. It remains a vital connection amid family concerns.
The journey to Birmingham itself presented obstacles. Petros did not arrive until Saturday, the day before the race. Issues with his electronic travel authorization caused significant delays.
He described two days of “awful” travel. Despite this, Petros excelled on a challenging course. He had spent months preparing at altitude in Kenya.
The victory offers a moment of celebration. “The race was incredibly, incredibly hard,” Petros admitted. He plans to unwind with “one, two, or three glasses” of red wine.
