Yalemzerf Yehualaw was born the eldest of six siblings in Finote Selam in the West Gojjam area of the Amhara Region.

[5] She also won the Great Ethiopian Run, a 10 kilometres road race in Addis Ababa, setting a new course record of 31:55.

[8] In August 2021, Yehualaw competed in the Antrim Coast Half Marathon in Northern Ireland setting a new world record time of 63m 44s, the first women's mark under 64 minutes not ratified because the course was 54 metres short.

[13][14] The 23-year-old successfully defended her Antrim Coast Half Marathon title in August, setting the UK all-comers' record with her joint fifth-fastest ever time of 64m 22s.

She then soon broke clear of Joyciline Jepkosgei in second, with 24th mile in a quick 4:43 according to initial reports[A] — the fastest split in women's marathon history.

Her finishing time was the third-fastest women's mark in the London event history, behind only the world records set by Paula Radcliffe (2:15:25) and Mary Keitany (2:17:01, women-only).