Later, after she came to the United States, she was working at a 7-Eleven in the nation's capital. She decided to quit and try running professionally.[6]
She made headlines in May 2011 when she ran the Dick's Sporting GoodsPittsburgh Marathon. Athletes prepped to race in the weekend festivities (one of whom was the Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl), and Delelecha focused on taking the top prize. As a light rain fell on the cool Sunday morning, she came through in top form, leading Serkalem Abrha, Tezeta Dengersa [no] and Alemtsehay Misganaw (who had registered for the half marathon, but missed a turn and finished the full marathon—in second place—only to be disqualified).[7] Delelecha's finishing time was a personal best 2:35:36.[8][9]
She would finish third in the 2013 Pittsburgh race, when Mary Akor finished first and Hirut Guangul finished second.[10] But the results would not stand for long. Guangul failed a drug test and her result was knocked out.[11] Then Akor was suspended a few months later for having failed a drug test at a Mexican marathon. Akor's results at all her 2013 marathons were changed to disqualifications.[12]
Thus, Delelecha became the fourth two-time women's winner of the marathon.
In June 2011, 38 days after winning in Pittsburgh, Delelecha won first place at the 35th Grandma's Marathon with the time of 02:30:39. A fellow countrywoman, Buzunesh Deba had introduced her to the race and encouraged her to try it. The day in 2011 started with rain, which stopped after the start of the race. There was a small tailwind and weather cool enough to see the breath of the runners along Lake Superior's North Shore. Delelecha ran with Everlyne Lagat until mile 19. Lagat finished second, while Dot McMahan came from behind to finish third.[6][13][14]
In 2012, Delelecha ran the Cherry Blossom 10 Mile race in Washington D.C. Her time of 54:33 placed her third, behind winner Julliah Kerubo Tinega and second-place Malika Mejdoub.[18]
^Ken Young; Andy Milroy, eds. (2022). "Yihunlish Bekele Deleleneh". Mattole Valley, California: Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Archived from the original on 25 February 2022. Retrieved 20 October 2022.
^ ab"2012 Chevron Houston Marathon Media Guide"(PDF). Marathon Elite Athletes. chevronhoustonmarathon.com. Houston, Texas: Chevron Houston Marathon. 2012. p. 23. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
^Gorman, Kevin (7 May 2012). "Second finisher comes up second short". Sports. Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Greensburg, Pennsylvania: Tribune-Review Publishing Company.
^Fittipaldo, Ray (16 May 2011). "Man hired as pace-setter wins marathon; Ethiopian runner finishes first in women's division". 2011 Pittsburgh Marathon Results. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Block Communications. p. B1.
^Werner, Sam; Meyer, Craig (6 May 2013). "Repeat winner in men's competition; late surge propels woman's champion". Special Section. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Block Communications. p. B1, B4.
^ abBlount, Rachel (19 June 2011). "Warm support provides push for women's winner; Yihunlish Bekele Delelecha ignored the elements and won by nearly a minute". Sports. Star Tribune. Minneapolis, Minnesota.
^Mbaisi, Chris (21 June 2011). "Kipyego Beat Deneke to Win Grandma's Marathon". Nairobi Star. Nairobi, Kenya. AllAfrica Global Media.
^Breen, Matt (21 November 2011). "Tuko, Kramer are winners in Philadelphia Marathon". Sports. Philadelphia Inquirer. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. p. D3.
^Janiczek, Jeff (21 November 2011). "Tuko king of hills; repeat for Kramer". Sports. Philadelphia Daily News. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 71.
^Werner, Sam (7 May 2012). "Teamwork leads friends to one-two race finish". Special Section. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Block Communications. p. B1, B4.
^Blount, Rachel (17 June 2012). "Rain, Pain Can't Ruin Day". Sports. Star Tribune. Minneapolis, Minnesota. p. C6.