From Training to Balance. 

Only weeks before, the scenery looks remarkably different. Amanal Petros runs within a group of the fastest marathon runners in the world through the empty landscape of East Africa, Kenya. “I spend about half of the year training in Kenya together with the best marathon runners”, he says.

Everyday life here is different, marked by repetition. It’s nothing but eat, train, and sleep. It’s the foundation of success – but in the end, only a few can claim it. “You train for months for a marathon, a period of pure focus and discipline. Day after day, it’s the same routine. And then the day comes – and you fail, for whatever reason. You have to be mentally strong for that, otherwise it can break you.”

In Tokyo, he is one of the few and takes a well-deserved place on the podium.

After long periods of training and competition, Amanal looks for balance and a little reward. “After an intense period like recently in Tokyo, I also treat myself to a burger once in a while. A beer is fine too. We spent the last three days at Oktoberfest. I always try to enjoy life, that’s what it’s there for!”.

Roots that never leave.

Born in Eritrea and raised in Ethiopia, Amanal came to Germany at the age of 16. While he drifts into his thoughts, you begin to see the two sides of who he is. “I grew up in a small village in the region of Tigray without electricity or cars. Every day I walked six kilometers to school and back. We had a lot of time”. Life among cows, goats, and a donkey for transport felt ordinary then for Amanal but turned into special memories after finding his way to Germany. “Here in Germany, everything is completely different – the language, the culture, the mentality. People are much more on the ball and everything is planned out. But I appreciate each world in it´s own way and experiencing both is a truly valuable experience”.


His passion for sports and running began in childhood and continued to grow after he arrived in Germany, also thanks to new opportunities. “In Ethiopia, I had dreams and goals – but not the conditions to make them happen. When I came to Germany, I received everything I needed to run – shoes, equipment, coaching. There was no reason to say no. No reason not to try”.


He took that reason seriously. Over the past 14 years, he faced challenges, set new personal bests, and steadily grew into a professional athlete – and finally, at the beginning of the year, signed his first contract with PUMA.

It’s not only us who are proud to have him in our PUMA Family. As Amanal puts it: “My relationship with PUMA is like a family. We work closely together, test new products, and develop the best shoes. Our collaboration is built on friendship and trust.”

Looking ahead, Amanal is already back in Kenya, preparing as best he can for his next big highlight in 2025: the prestigious Valencia Marathon, taking place on December 7, 2025. As both a person and an athlete, Amanal inspires us and the PUMA Fam will, of course, be cheering again when he takes on the streets of Valencia.