04.02.2025

Women's 800 metres: Ethiopian top runners Habitam Alemu and Worknesh Mesele at the start of the INIT INDOOR MEEITNG Karlsruhe

Outdoors, they all have times of under two minutes. Under the indoor roof, however, Habitam Alemu's 1:57.86 minutes stands out. The woman from Ethiopia ran this time during her meeting victory last year at the Copernicus Cup in Torun, Poland, which is also part of the World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold. This was not only a meeting record, but also a personal best for the 27-year-old from the large Ethiopian running community. Her greatest international success to date was winning the bronze medal at the 2018 African Championships in Asaba in 1:58.86 minutes behind South Africa's Caster Semenya and Francine Niyonsaba from Burundi. In addition to Alemu, her compatriot Worknesh Mesele will also be competing at the INIT INDOOR MEETING Karlsruhe. She also ran her current best time of 1:59.93 minutes at last year's meeting in Torun, the first time she has run under two minutes indoors.

Switzerland's Audrey Werro is close to such times. The 20-year-old is regarded as one of the biggest middle-distance talents from Switzerland. In 2021, she became European U20 champion in Tallinn and a year later she won the silver medal at the U20 World Championships in Cali, Colombia. At the Olympic Games in Paris, she finished eighth in the final. While she has a best time of 1:57.26 minutes outdoors, she is just 17 hundredths off the mark indoors (2:00.16 minutes). The 25-year-old Majtie Kolberg from LG Kreis Ahrweiler also wants to do the same. The only German in the starting field at the INIT INDOOR MEETING Karlsruhe has an outdoor record of 1:58.52 minutes - also under two minutes - and an indoor record of 2:01.49 minutes.