Mumbai: Solomon Deksisa and Amane Gobena made it a double delight for Ethiopia in the USD 405,000 Tata Mumbai Marathon here Sunday by clinching the respective men’s and women’s races.
Deksisa broke away from the rest of the field at the 35-km mark and kept his nose ahead for the reminder of the 42.195km men’s event to lead a 1-2 finish for Ethiopia ahead of compatriot Shumet Akalnaw.
Deksisa clocked 2:9:34 seconds, off the course record of 2:08:35, while his compatriot Shumet crossed the finish line in 2:10:00 after being in hot pursuit of the lead runner over the last seven kms without being able to catch up.
Kenyan Joshua Kipkorir, second last year, ended up third this year in 2:10:30. Gobena made the women’s race her own to win by a comfortable margin and won in 2:25:49 ahead of defending champion Bornes Kitur of Kenya who clocked 2:28:48 with male pacer Bernard Soi of South Africa helping her maintain her speed.
In third place was another Ethiopian, Shumo Genemo (2:29:41). The overall winners of both full marathons earned USD 42,000 each. Deksisa, running his sixth marathon with a personal best of 2:06:22 that he had clocked while finishing second in the Rooterdam Marathon in April 2016, breasted the tape 70 metres ahead of second-placed compatriot Shumet, accelerating after the turn into the Marine Drive straight at Chowpatty.
Indian men racers Gopi Thonakal, the winner of the Asian marathon title in November last in China, and his army rival Nitendra Singh Rawat, the course record holder among the home country participants, finished just outside the top ten in 11th and 12th places respectively.
press trust of india