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Run where champions train
A dawn run on the forest trails of Entoto, around 3,000 metres up, where Ethiopia's great distance runners train.
Above Addis Ababa, the eucalyptus forest of Mount Entoto is where generations of Ethiopian runners have built their endurance — Haile Gebrselassie trained there at least three times a week. Join the early-morning crowd on its dirt trails.
At around 3,000 metres, Entoto is higher than the city below, and its soft forest trails and rolling dirt roads are ideal for building fitness without pounding the legs. At dawn they fill with runners, from elite groups to people training for their first race.
A local running guide sets a pace that suits you — this is about the experience, not a time — and explains how Ethiopian runners train: easy days truly easy, lots of running off-road, and plenty of it in groups. Breakfast afterwards is the reward.
Serious runners can go further: the town of Bekoji, birthplace of Derartu Tulu, Kenenisa Bekele and the Dibaba sisters, and the Great Ethiopian Run in late November — a 10-kilometre race through the capital with tens of thousands of runners.
At this altitude, everyone runs slower and breathes harder — we suggest at least two days in Addis before running hard.
The details
- Time needed
- An early morning
- Where
- Entoto, Addis Ababa
- When
- Year-round (best Oct – May)
What's included
- A local running guide
- Transport to and from the Entoto trails
- Water and a post-run breakfast
- Routes and pace adjusted to your level
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