Derartu Tulu
- Born
- Mar 21, 1972 (54 years old)
- Birthplace
- Bekoji, Ethiopia
- Events
- 10 000 m · 5000 Metres Short Track
- Height
- 1.60 m
- Weight
- 45 kg
Derartu Tulu NL COL (Oromo: Daraartuu Tulluu, Amharic: ደራርቱ ቱሉ; born 21 March 1972) is an Ethiopian former long-distance runner, who competed in track, cross country running, and road running up to the marathon distance. Derartu is the first Ethiopian woman and the first black African woman to win an Olympic gold medal. She won 10,000 metres titles at the 1992 Barcelona and 2000 Sydney Olympics, and a bronze in the event at the 2004 Athens Olympics.
At the World Championships in Athletics, Derartu took silver in the 10,000 m in 1995, and a gold in 2001. She was a three-time IAAF World Cross Country champion (1995, 1997, 2000). She was serving as the President of Ethiopian Athletics Federation from 2018 to 2024.
She was succeeded by Sileshi Sihine. Her replacement cited as a response to controversy surrounding the federation stance during 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. Derartu comes from a sporting family of several Olympic medalists, which include her cousins Tirunesh, Genzebe and Ejegayehu Dibaba.
As of Nov 1, 2026: 10 000 m 30:17.49 (#40 all-time), 5000 Metres Short Track 14:54.73, 2011 season best 2:35:58 (Feb 20, 2011, Yokohama (JPN)) · Olympic Games: 2 gold, 1 bronze · World Championships: 1 gold, 1 silver · 54 years old
Personal bests
WA points calculator →Medals
| Competitions | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Olympic Games | 2 | – | 1 | 3 |
| World Championships | 1 | 1 | – | 2 |
| Total | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
Progression
| Season | Discipline | Result | Wind | Date | Competitions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Marathon | 2:35:58 | – | Feb 20, 2011 | Yokohama (JPN) |
| 2010 | 10Kilometr | 32:53 | – | May 16, 2010 | Manchester (GBR) |
| 2010 | Semi | 1:13:03 | – | Sep 19, 2010 | Philadelphia, PA (USA) |
| 2010 | Marathon | 2:28:13 | – | Mar 14, 2010 | Nagoya (JPN) |
| 2009 | 10Kilometr | 33:47 | – | Sep 26, 2009 | Genève (SUI) |
| 2009 | 15Kilometr | 54:25 | – | Dec 31, 2009 | São Paulo (BRA) |
| 2009 | Semi | 1:10:33 | – | Sep 20, 2009 | Philadelphia, PA (USA) |
| 2009 | Marathon | 2:28:52 | – | Nov 1, 2009 | New York City Marathon |