The Hindu : Sport / Athletics : Mukesh Kumar wins Tata half marathon

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Jul 30, 2004

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Sport - Athletics

Mukesh Kumar wins Tata half marathon

By Our Special Correspondent

JAMSHEDPUR, JULY 29. Mukesh Kumar Yadav of Uttar Pradesh won the fourth all-India Tata invitational half marathon (21 km) here on Thursday, denying two-time champion and international Bhairo Singh Lone of Railways his third title.

The 22-year-old Benares-born Yadav, an accomplished athlete over 5,000 and 10,000m, won his career's first half marathon after being asked to pursue the event by National coach Joginder Singh Saini, recently.

Yadav, who won the 5,000m gold medal at the inter-State athletics meet in Chennai recently, represented India at the Islamabad SAF Games in long distance races and also the world cross-country meet.

Yadav ran a calculated race after a bunch of four runners, including Lone and third-placed Deep Chand broke away from the rest with 10 km remaining and clocked an excellent 1:08.30.

Lone, 32, from Neemuch in Madhya Pradesh, was the first among the four runners to enter the JRD Tata Sports Complex. Lurking behind the Railway athlete, Yadav surged ahead with 100m to go and showed a clean pair of heels to finish ahead and won the cash prize of Rs. 75,000. Lone, winner here in 2001 and 2003, clocked 1:08.34s. Deep Chand finished third in 1:08.35s.

"My training at the National camp at Shilaroo near Shimla helped me perform better,'' Yadav said after the race. "My good show here will surely help me gain a place in the Indian team for the October 2 World half marathon slated to be held in Delhi.''

L. Aruna Devi of Manipur won the women's race in 1:21.17s from her Statemate Hidangmayum Sangini Devi. Sangini clocked 1:22.34s, while Rina Das of Bengal finished third in 1:22.52s. Aruna won a cash prize of Rs. 35,000.

Aruna, 26, a senior clerk with Eastern Railway in Kolkata and a National record holder in the women's 10,000m, had won the inaugural edition. After skipping the next two years, she returned this year to retain the crown.

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