Asylum seekers in Honolulu Marathon run to provide for their families

Dec. 9—Opportunities to run don't come often for Filmon Ande and Tsegay Weldlibanos. When they line up at the start line for the 2023 Honolulu Marathon on Sunday, they intend to make the most of this opportunity.

Opportunities to run don't come often for Filmon Ande and Tsegay Weldlibanos. When they line up at the start line for the 2023 Honolulu Marathon on Sunday, they intend to make the most of this opportunity.

Ande and Weldlibanos are both asylum seekers from the authoritarian African nation of Eritrea. Due to their status as asylees, Ande and Weldlibanos are limited to competitions within the United States.

"Athletes on asylum are not allowed to leave the country. They're not allowed to go anywhere. Being able to come here (to Hawaii ), this is wonderful and provides a fantastic opportunity, " Weldlibanos and Ande's coach James McKirdy said. "But there are many opportunities out there right now in Canada, in Europe that exist, and they just can't go. Because if they leave the country and if they win a race in Europe, they're never coming back to the United States. They cannot leave until they get their green card. And that is a process that has no time limit."

Weldlibanos filed his asylum papers in May 2019, while Ande began his process in July 2022. What Weldlibanos has learned over the past four years, and what Ande is now realizing, is that the asylum process is a slow one.

"It's not moving forward. We haven't heard anything, so we just keep waiting, " a translator speaking for Weldlibanos and Ande said.

While they wait, Ande and Weldlibanos currently reside in Flagstaff, Ariz., where they train with McKirdy and his company McKirdy Trained.

Weldlibanos discovered his passion and talent for running in 2010, when he was a student. He eventually went on to race professionally after he was done with school. He signed a contract and began competing outside of Eritrea. When COVID-19 hit and races were canceled, Weldlibanos decided to stay in the U.S. and seek asylum rather than returning home.

"He was on a contract, and I don't know the full details of it because I wasn't a part of that at the time, but when COVID hit, there were no races. There was nothing. So he couldn't earn money through racing, " McKirdy said. "Everything was shut down. He had to find ways of making money. As a professional runner, you are still relying on your ability to do your job, which is race and win money. He's talented enough to do that ; however, the opportunities, like everything, disappeared. You can't win from home in the road running circuit. So he had to find more work."

Weldlibanos began working 70 hours a week, mowing lawns at a country club while also driving for Uber Eats and Instacart to earn money to send home to his family. Since he began his asylum process four years ago, Weldlibanos hasn't seen his wife and daughter, who still reside in Eritrea.

"It's hard to be separated from his daughter and his wife, " a translator speaking for Weldlibanos said. "It's gonna be four years this coming January. But he knows it's not going to be easy if he goes back home. He knows what's going to happen to him."

Weldlibanos speaks with his wife and daughter each Sunday, but communication is often tough due to connection issues and the calls being metered.

"I haven't met someone who works as hard to provide for a family that he doesn't even get to see. For someone who never gets to see his wife and his daughter, he is as present a father and husband I've ever known, " McKirdy said. "They live a world apart, and he loves them so so so much. So when a race doesn't go well, it hits him. It's not that he failed as a person, it's that he failed as a father and a husband because he didn't get the chance to provide for them."

Ande's journey started like Weldlibanos'. He began running in school before becoming a professional runner. Ande and the Eritrean track and field team arrived in Eugene, Ore., to participate in the World Athletics Championship in 2022. When Ande was told by team officials the night before the race that he would not be competing and would be sent home to Eritrea, he and three of his teammates, along with one coach, left the team. Ande submitted his asylum paperwork and began living in training in the United States.

"The team officials made the decision the day before the race. They had a big argument after (the team officials ) let him know that he's not going to race, " Ande's translator said. "After the argument, they told him to wait until what happens when he goes back home, but he didn't want to return. That's when he knew that he wanted to stay here."

Due to his sudden departure, Ande never had the chance the say goodbye to his family. He has since spoken to some members of his family, but Ande has not been able to speak with his father in over a year.

His path eventually led him to McKirdy and Weldlibanos in Flagstaff. Communication was hard at first for McKirdy and Ande due to the language barrier, and a serious injury slipped through the cracks.

"When he came over, he was injured. We just didn't know. He had a stress fracture in his pelvis. That is really severe for a professional runner. It'll take you out for a very long time, " McKirdy said. "He's the type of athlete who will just kind of train through anything, and it took me some time to learn that about him because of the language barrier. He probably could have been at his current physical level a lot sooner, but because he was willing to train through pain and I didn't see it, it hindered his ability have a season in the spring."

After a lengthy break from running, Ande's recent performances have been trending upward. He ran well in a pair of half-marathons, placing fourth in both the Philadelphia Distance Half-Marathon (1 :02.20 ) and the BAA Half-Marathon in Boston (1 :02 :22 ) in preparation for his return to running full marathons.

"He missed from basically April to August. That's a long time off, " McKirdy said. "But he's better now than he's ever been. He's ready to roll. I'm very optimistic about Sunday. There are some talented runners in the elite field. But I believe Filmon, if he feels OK, can win this race."

"Tsegay, if he runs smart, might surprise a few of those other athletes as well, " McKirdy added. "Between those two, Tsegay has a lot more marathon experience. Sometimes experience matters more than having youthful legs."

Ande and Weldlibanos will take on Ethiopian runner Abayneh Degu, who has the fastest personal best in the men's elite field but has never medaled in a full marathon. Paul Lonyangata of Kenya, who ran a personal best 2 :06.10 in Paris in 2017, also will be competing. Fellow Kenyan Reuben Kiprop Kerio (PB : 2 :07.00 ) will be running in his fifth Honolulu Marathon. He previously ran in three as the pacemaker, failing to finish once due to illness. In his lone Honolulu Marathon finish in 2018, Kerio claimed the silver medal with a time of 2 :12.59.

On the women's side, Kenyan runner Cynthia Limo will make her marathon debut Sunday.

She has run a half-marathon personal best of 1 :06.04, equivalent to a 2 :18.42 full marathon. Limo will have to fend off a pair of runners from Ethiopia. Kasu Bitew Lemeneh, with a personal best of 2 :26.18, has already run in three marathons in 2023. Sintayehu Tilahun Getahun will be running in her first Honolulu Marathon. Her personal best is 2 :22.19.

Rounding out the women's elite field is Japanese runner Yukari Abe. The 34-year-old ran a personal best 2 :24.02 in the Osaka Women's Marathon in 2022. She'll be competing in her first Honolulu Marathon, where she will attempt to become the first female Japanese winner since 2008. No male Japanese runner has ever won the Honolulu Marathon.