He started the following year with a rare appearance at the 1989 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, finishing 74th in the long race (12 km). In April, he ran a personal best 2:11:07 time to finish fourth at the 1989 World Marathon Cup in Milan. Six months later, he finished second in the Chicago Marathon, losing to Englishman Paul Davies-Hale by just under two minutes. For the second straight year, he finished second at the Fukuoka Marathon in December. In addition, he competed at two IAAF events, the World Cup (4th in the marathon) and Golden Gala.