Lagat, Worknesh top Mumbai Marathon as upsets galore
MUMBAI: Kenya’s Cosmas Lagat stormed to a surprise win with the second-best timing (2:09:15) for elite men in the Mumbai Marathon on Sunday whereas Ethiopian Worknesh Alemu (2:25:45) pipped defending champion Amane Gobena for gold in the elite women’s race here.
Apart from Lagat’s one-man show, Ethiopian runners dominated the track on an otherwise cool Mumbai morning wherein temperatures ranged between 23-26 degrees with around 47 per cent humidity.
The Ethiopian duo of Aychew Bantie (2:10:05) and Shumet Akalnew (2:10:14) bagged silver and bronze respectively in the men’s category whereas Gobena (2:26:09) in second spot was followed by compatriot Birke Debele (02:26:39). Birke battled a stomach bug during the race but never lagged behind, finishing third. Both winners — Lagat and Worknesh — pocketed a cheque of $45,000 (~32.04 lakh) each. Along with Lagat, Worknesh also recorded the second-best timing in the Mumbai Marathon’s 16-year history in her category.
LAGAT’S SHOW
The day’s biggest disappointment might have come from Abera Kuma — who finished seventh after declaring that he was looking to set track record — but it was Lagat who stole the show with a terrific display.
Lagat took the decisive lead after completing 29 km and kept on pushing the pacemakers — three at the start in the leading group of 14 — and soon extended his advantage up to one minute.
Lagat emerged with what looked like a humongous lead and ran aggressively to make it a oneman show thereon for the last 10km or so. The 24-year-old from Kenya admitted later that despite enjoying a massive advantage, he was still wary of other runners’ abilities. “It was a good moment to make a break but I also knew there were good runners behind me and from 35km I was never sure how close they were to me,” he said.
SUDHA, RAWAT TOP
Among elite Indian athletes, Sudha Singh and Nitendra Singh Rawat bagged top honours while attaining the qualification marks in their respective sections for the Doha World Championships. Asian Games gold medallist Sudha clocked 2:34:56 to finish first among Indian female runners and also erase OP Jaisha’s course record of 2:37:29, set four years ago. Jyoti Gawte finished second (2:45:48) while Jigmet Dolma came third in 3:10:42. Like Sudha, Rawat was the star among Indian men as he clocked 2:15:52 to upstage pre-race favourite and defending champion Gopi T who came second with a timing of 2:17:03. Karan Singh finished third clocking 2:20:10.