German's three fastest marathon runners of all time, Amanal Petros, Samuel Fitwi and Richard Ringer will compete together for the first time as they take on a strong field at the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon set for Sunday, 25 October.Download our Mozzart Sport app for more newsThe trio will want to break a 29-year wait for a home winner and retain the trophy at home for the first time since Michael Fietz did it in 1997, but are facing a herculean task in their quest as they face a field that features 2024 winner Benard Biwott on return.Ethiopia’s Zeineba Yimer heads the women's start list and is one of three runners who have personal bests (PB) of sub 2:20. Germany’s Blanka Dörfel will run her marathon debut too.“Obviously there will be much focus on our three German top runners in Frankfurt on 25 October. However we are not presenting them a victory on a plate. They will be challenged by a strong field," said Race Director Jo Schindler.Agnes Ngetich, Sabastian Sawe lead Kenyan charge in 2026 World Athlete of the Year nominationsBiwott can still be considered a newcomer in the marathon. The 24 year-old Kenyan has only run three races over the classic distance. Two years ago he ran his debut at the Frankfurt Marathon and caused an upset when he took the race with 2:05:54.He has raced twice since, winning his second marathon in 2025 when he triumphed in Paris with his current PB of 2:05:25. This year the Kenyan was ninth in Cape Town, clocking 2:07:34, in a race won by Ethiopia's Mohamed Esa in 2:04:55.However, he is not the quickest on paper. The field is headlined by German record-holder Petros who carries a 2:04:03 from his second place finish at last year's Valencia marathon, won by Kenya's John Korir. ##NAJAVA_MECA_10010067##Andualem Belay, a 2:04:44 Ethiopian runner, a PB dating back to 2023 in Berlin, is the second-fastest in the field, behind Petros and ahead of Fitwi who brings a 2:04:45 PB to the race, from his second place finish at the Haspa Hamburg marathon in April.On his part, Ringer has a 2:04:47 PB from his eighth place finish in Boston in April.Another challenge is likely to come from Haimro Alame, who is originally from Ethiopia but competes for Israel, and has a PB of 2:06:04. He was fourth at the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo.Meanwhile, the fastest woman on the start list is Yimer. The Ethiopian improved to 2:18:47 this spring, finishing third at the Barcelona Marathon. Three years ago the 28-year-old won the race in Spain and then finished fourth in Berlin.How AK is leveraging AFCON 2027 upgrades to prepare Kasarani for 2029 World ChampionshipsUSA's Betsy Saina (2:19:17) and Ethiopia's Buzunesh Getachew (2:19:27) are the other two athletes on the start list with PBs of sub 2:20. Both are already familiar with the route. Whilst Saina finished eighth here in 2018, Getachew is the winner from 2023. She also clocked her current PB in Frankfurt three years ago.A runner to watch on 25 October is Kenya's Marion Kibor, who improved to 2:21:12 in Hamburg this year.