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News04 Dec 2005


An all-African affair at Pune Marathon

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Josephat N’Deti continued the Kenyan winning-steak at the Hutch Pune International Marathon with his season’s best of 2:19:35 to win the 20th edition of this event this morning. This is the fourth consecutive year a Kenyan has won at Pune, the seventh time in the last 20 years.

The 32-year old N’Deti, has a personal best of 2:13:37 (1997), and had won the Abebe Bikila Marathon in June of this year in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (2:21:22 at altitude). His compatriot Ambrose Nzioka Makau, winner at Pune in 2002 and the runner-up the following year, did the front running in the initial stages of the race. Another 32-year-old, Ethiopian Gemechu Kebede (2:10:16 PB - 1993), along with Indians Shivdhan Singh and Dattaraya Jaybhay were the main challengers to the Kenyans.       

N’Deti took the lead at Mhatre Bridge and never looked back taking the prize purse of INR 250,000 (approx. USD 6000).  Kebede (2:20:38) and Makau (2:22:26) took the next two spots.

Russia takes women’s half marathon

Russian Nailya Yulamanova ran a splendid race to take the women’s half marathon title in 1:15:05, to break the Kenyan monopoly which had seen victories for the east Africans in the last two years in Pune. 

Kenya’s Joyce Kandie with two victories in the UK this year at Windsor and Carlisle, and a career best 74:22 (2003) to her credit was the pre-race favourite but Yulamanova forced the pace and the Kenyan could not stay with her. Kandie with 1:17:05 and Teringo Gelachew of Ethiopia clocking 1:20:19 finished second and third respectively.

Incidentally, the Russian Irina Timofeyeva, who had placed second at Pune last year and won the inaugural Hutch Delhi Half Marathon this year, won the Singapore International Marathon earlier today.  Click here for race report

Singapore was the second stage of Standard Chartered’s ‘Greatest Race On Earth’ series, with Mumbai, India hosting the next stage of the series on 15 January 2006.  

Race against AIDS

The Pune Marathon has done its fair share to promote charity runs throughout its history. This year there was a charity 3km run also held, entitled “Race against AIDS”.

Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss and Mr. Oscar Fernandes, Union Ministers for Health and Sports respectively, Chairman of Pune International Marathon Trust and IAAF Council Member Mr. Suresh Kalmadi, Olympic tennis medallist Leander Paes, Bollywood stars Yukta Mukhi and Amrita Thapar among others were the celebrities present at Pune to inspire the total of 30,000 participants spread across as many as 13 race categories.

Dattatraya Jaybhay of Services and Madhuri Gurnule of LIC, the first among Indian men and women runners here, were awarded a special prize of INR 100,000 each.

Ram. Murali Krishnan for the IAAF

Results:

Men (42.195 Km):
1. Josephat N’Deti (KEN) 2:19:35, 2. Gemechu Kebede (ETH) 2:20:38, 3. Ambrose Makau (KEN) 2:22:26, 4. Aleksey Khokhlov (RUS) 2:22:55, 5. Ashenafi Erkollo (ETH) 2:25:18, 6. Dattatraya Jaybhay (IND) 2:26:57, 7. Sanjeeva Chandrapala (SRI) 2:27:06, 8. Shivdhan Singh (IND) 2:27:38, 9. H.A. Chinnappa (IND) 2:28:10, 10. John Kiplimo Sang (KEN) 2:29:03.  

Women (21.097 Km):
1. Nailya Yulamanova (RUS) 1:15:05, 2. Joyce Kandie (KEN) 1:17:05, 3. Teringo Gelachew (ETH) 1:20:19, 4. Kore Alemu (ETH) 1:20:27, 5. Lenne Duss (DEN) 1:20:35, 6. Madhuri Gurnule (LIC) 1:22:07, 7. Pauline Mutwa Thitu (KEN) 1:24:40; 8. Oksana Khokhlova (RUS) 1:24:40, 9. Ruth Mbinya Kalunda (KEN) 1:25:02, 10. Nisha Wankhede (IND) 1:26:19.

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