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Yomif Kejelcha

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Yomif Kejelcha Atomsa (born 1 August 1997) is an Ethiopian distance runner who competes in long-distance events. He comes from Showa in the Oromia region of Ethiopia and runs for the Oromia Construction & Engineering Corporation Athletics Club. He has also trained with the Nike Oregon Project.

Career highlights
- World records: he held the world indoor mile record with 3:47.01 (set in 2019; later broken in 2025) and the world half-marathon record with 57:30 (set in Valencia in 2024; later broken in 2025).
- World Championships: silver medal in the 10,000 metres at the 2019 Doha World Championships.
- World Indoor Championships: gold medals in the 3000 metres (2016 and 2018).
- Youth and junior titles: 2013 World Youth Champion in the 3000 metres and 2014 World Junior Champion in the 5000 metres; 2014 Youth Olympic Games gold in the 3000 metres.

Personal bests (highlights)
- Outdoor: 1500m 3:32.37 (2024); Mile 3:58.24 (2019); 3000m 7:23.64 (2023); 5000m 12:38.95 (2024); 10,000m 26:31.01 (2024).
- Indoor: 1000m 2:18.34; 1500m 3:31.25; Mile 3:47.01; 2000m 4:57.74; 3000m 7:38.67.
- Road: 5 km 12:50; 10 km 26:37; Half Marathon 57:30 (world record at the time).

Personal life
Kejelcha is the son of Kejelcha Atoma and Biritu Negese and is the fifth of nine children. He left high school to focus on running and trained with Burayu Kenema Club before moving to bigger training camps. He married Yadu Birhanu Biru in 2022. He is a Chelsea FC fan and looks up to his running hero, Kenenisa Bekele. He typically runs about 120–140 kilometers per week, training alongside teammates such as Telahun Haile Bekele, Hagos Gebrhiwet, and Birhanu Balew.


This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 16:18 (CET).