Participating in a marathon for the first time, Ethiopian Tesfaye Abera runs away to Mumbai glory;Compatriot Dinknesh Mekash retains women's title
Who doesn't like it when an underdog wins? Better still, what if a debutant, competing against world-class runners, wins a marathon?
That's exactly what Ethiopian Tesfaye Abera did by winning the men's full (42km) Mumbai Marathon with a commendable timing of 2:09:46 on Sunday.
The Kenyan were favourites for the marathon but it was the Ethiopians who came out in flying colours. Abera wasn't the only one to keep his country's flag flying high. Defending champion Dinknesh Mekash retained her title by winning the women's marathon in 2 hours 30 minutes. Both the winners pocketed a cool $41,000 each.
Prior to the Mumbai Marathon, the 6ft 4in Abera had only participated in 10 km and 15km events. His only half-marathon was in China last year, where he stood third. He wasn't too satisfied with running a half-marathon and said, like his countrymen do, his dream too was "running and winning a marathon". And to win it in the first attempt itself, is "the best feeling ever".
And, he did it in some style. For starters, he was up against Kenya's Luke Kibet and Evans Roto. Kibet was the winner of the 2007 IAAF World Championship in Osaka and Roto was last year's winner here (he missed the course record by one second).
Abera could have been richer by $15,000 had he broken the course record: 2:09:32 set by Uganda's Jackson Kiprop in 2013. But he kept looking back a number of times in the last 5km of the race, particularly when he was virtually running alone with a lead of more than 500m on the Marine Drive stretch.
For most part of the men's race, Kenya's Edwin Kiptoo was the frontman followed closely by Kibet and Russian Nzima Sibusiso. It was at the 30km mark at Worli seaface when Kibet, Ethiopian Dereje Debele and Abera broke away from the pact. At 34 kms, near Haji Ali, Abera started taking longer strides and building his lead. Reaching Marine Drive, Abera had a comfortable lead and it was then that he slowed down a bit, knowing well that he was in a good position to win the race.
Debele (2:10:57) finished second followed by Kibet (2:10:31).
Women's winner Dinknesh felt she could have run a little faster had it not been for the hot and humid weather. She also ran 21kms with a slight injury. "At the half-way stage, I felt acute pain on my back and around the ankle. That's why I couldn't break the record," she said. –anil.dias@dnaindia.net
Results: Elite: 1. Tesfaye Abera (ETH) 2:09:46s; 2. Dereje Debele (ETH) 2:10:31s; 3. Luke Kibet (KEN) 2:10:57s
Women: 1. Dinknesh Mekash (ETH) 2:30:00; 2. Kumeshi Sichala (ETH) 2:30:56; 3. Marta Megra (ETH) 2:31:45
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