Mumbai: A bout of cramps undid defending champion Mohit Rathor’s hopes of claiming a hat-trick in the 11 th All India Vasai Virar Municipal Corporation full marathon held in Virar
on Sunday. Rathor, however, braved it well and finished second. Tirtha Pun of the Gorkha Regiment (Darjeeling) stole the show by winning the 42-km race in 2 hours and 21.48
minutes. Rathor, who kept pace with the 34-year-old Pun halfway through the race, began cramping at the 30km stage and fell behind, but the runner from Uttar Pradesh still had enough steam to
hold his own and finish second in 2:26.43. Tadakhe Sikandar Chindhu of Champawat, Uttarakhand came in third in a time of 2:28.36. Pun, a seasoned half marathon runner who recently converted to the longer distance, took home Rs 3 lakh, while Rathor had to be content with Rs 2 lakh in the event organised by Vasai Virar City Municipal Corporation and the Vasai Taluka Kala Krida Vikas Mandal. The men’s Half Marathon was won by M.D. Nurhasan clocking 1:04.45 just 8 seconds outside the course record of 1:04.37, set by Anish Thapa in 2022. Coming home in second place was Puneet Yadav in 1:04.49, followed by Arun Rathod, four seconds behind in 1:04.53. The women’s Half Marathon was won by Nagpur’s Prajakta Godbole in a relatively slow
timing of 1:18.12, pushing behind the fancied Tamsi Singh, who finished in 1:20.09.
Phoolan Pal, coming home in 1:20.28 was placed third. The Half Marathon winners took home Rs 2
lakh each. Among the various high-profile dignitaries who participated in the event were Krishna Prakash (IPS) and Vishwas Nangre Patil (IPS), along with the former Collector of Palghar
District, Kailash Shinde (IAS). More than 20,000 runners took part in the event, which was flagged off by Hangzhou Asian Games multiple medallist Parul Chaudhary. Sharing the stage with Parul was teenage shooter Rudranksh Patil, 19, member of the Asian Games 10m air rifle gold medal winning team. Marathi filmstars Mahesh Manjrekar, Samir Choughule and Arun Kadam added a dash of glamour to the event with their presence. A day before the races the 28-year-old Parul interacted with amateur runners and posed for photos with pace-setters. Recalling her journey from a village in Meerut, while answering questions from elite and amateur runners, she said: “Like each one of you, I started in a small way by winning the 800m in a junior meet, then moved up distances as I gained in confidence. I have done road running here, including the Mumbai Marathon (21k women’s course record holder in 2020). The steeplechaser also urged parents to stand by their children who want to take up any sporting activity. “Whenever kids show interest in sports, please support them as much as possible. I have come this far only due to parents’ support,
especially from my father,” she added. Members of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly (MLA) Hitendra Thakur, Kshitij Thakur, and Rajesh Patil along with Member of Parliament Rajendra Gavit and Vasai-Virar Municipal Commissioner Anil Kumar Pawar, IAS were among the dignitaries who presented
the awards to the winners. Victorious Endeavours, a sports management firm, presented branded running shoes to theboys and girls Under-18 and Under-16 winners. They also provided nourishment to top three finishers in the Vasai-Virar local races gifting them 1 kg raagi laddoos each. “It was a learning experience for us to be part of such a well-organised national event in a distant suburb of Mumbai. Our awards to the winners is a humble attempt to encourage them to pursue the healthy habit of running,” said Ms Dimple Joshi, Director of Victorious
Endeavours while presenting the awards. Results Full Marathon (42.195 kms) Elite Men: Tirtha Pun 02:21:48; Mohit Rathor 02:26:43; Tadakhe Sikandar Chindhu 02:28:36. Open Men: Manoj Kumar Yadav 02:27:25; Nikhil Singh 02:29:53; Bhagatsing Valvi
02:30:59. Open Women: Ashvini Jadhav 03:06:38; Abhilasha Bhagat 03:22:48; Nutan N 03:23:44. Half Marathon (21.097 kms) Elite Men: Md Nurhasan 01:04:45; Puneet Yadav 01:04:49; Arun Rathod 01:04:53. Elite Women: Prajakta Godbole 01:18:12; Tamsi Singh 01:20:09; Phoolan Pal 01:20:28.
11k run Men: 1. Chandan Yadav 00:33:31; 2. Abhishek Devkate 00:33:42; 3. Kripa Shankar 00:34:21 Women: 1. Divya Pingale 00:43:18; 2. Jayashr1 Punjara 00:43:35; 3. Monika Singh 00:43:54
Under-18 Palghar District Boys (11km): 1. Atul Chibhade 00:37:07; 2. Pratik Dhangare 00:37:18; 3. Sachin Govind 00:37:19 Girls (5km): 1. Aditi Patil 00:19:45; 2. Reshma Vad 00:20:31; 3. Sampada Khamkar 00:22:25 Vasai Taluka Races Under-16 Boys (5km): 1. Daksh Kadu; 2. Deepak Mistry; 3. Shani Yadav Under-16 Girls (5km): 1. Soniya Padawale; 2. Vaishnavi Valte; 3. Aakansha Mhatre
