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Suresh Kumar breaks course record
Bengaluru, 17 May 2015: On a fine Sunday, with the city soaking in the previous evening's downpour, Bengalureans flooded the streets in the thousands to take part in the world's premier 10k. The city witnessed some of the most accomplished track and field and road runners as the TCS World 10K got underway for the eighth time in the city. The event also saw an increase in overall prize money earned by the top runners across multiple categories. In 2015, an astounding total of $194,376 dollars was distributed amongst the top 10 finishers in the elite categories, a marked improvement over last year's cumulative figure.
Amongst the international category of World 10K for Elite Men, the Ethiopians dominated proceedings as Mosinet Geremew stole the show. The race to claim top honours was tightly contested with the top three finishers separated by 2 seconds each, Geremew emerged victorious, clocking in a time of 00:28:16. His fellow countryman Fikadu Seboka finished second with a timing of 00:28:18, followed by Edwin Kiptoo from Kenya who finished his run in 00:28:20. Delighted with his maiden win at the TCS World 10K, Mosinet Geremew said "It is my third time in India and the motivation that I have received from the people has been commendable. This was a difficult run and the competition was tough to say the least, but I am glad to have come out on top."
The story of the day was the spirit of competition, as the entirety of the race was contested in the best possible manner. This held true across all categories, but on the start line of the elite women's race, it was evident that every athlete made enough room for the other, thus ensuring everybody enjoyed a fair race. Mamitu Daska from Ethiopia produced a world-class performance, winning the run but missing the overall course record by 9 seconds. Mamitu ended the race on a high, steering ahead of the competition by a clear 13 seconds, she ended the run with an overall time of 00:31:57. Although Mamitu had pulled far into the lead, the battle for second and third was a thrilling encounter with both Wude Ayalew and Gladys Chesir exchanging positions at the 7km mark. However eventually Wude Ayalew was able to make a significant impression on third placed Gladys when she passed her, the move came as a body blow to Gladys who was unable to recover from the pass and seemed to settle for third. Wude raced ahead by two seconds finishing second at 00:32:10. Speaking about her medal-winning performance, Mamitu said "I am really happy to end the run on a winning note. Though I was comfortable for the first four kilometres, it got a bit tougher. However I took initiative to push myself after that and crossed the finish line before my competition."
The Indian Category of World 10K for Elite Men starred two time winner Suresh Kumar, B.C Tilak and the senior most member of the men's battalion, Kheta Ram. The build up to the race amongst the Indians was mixed, whilst on the one hand there was a quietly confident Kheta Ram, on the other was a confident and determined Suresh Kumar, who made his intention of breaking records, evident through the week's press meets. Suresh Kumar's drive and determination powered him to his third victory in the Indian elite men's category. Speaking on his victory, Suresh Kumar said, " I had made up my mind to come here with the sole purpose of breaking records, I felt the conditions were ideal for running today, so in the morning I knew there was a great opportunity to achieve my target. When the race flagged off, I stayed focused at the task on hand and didn't look over my shoulder for the competition." Suresh capped off a hugely successful run, with another small victory, he broke the course record by an entire 10 seconds and secured himself a 'course record jackpot' to the tune of INR 2,00,000.
Surya L led the Indian Women's challenge at the Elite 10k, finishing first with a timing of 00:35:58, seventeen seconds ahead of defending champion Swati Gadhave who finished at 00:36:15. Monika Athare finished third clocking a time of 00:36:54. Overjoyed with her performance, Surya concluded "I love this feeling of having won this race. Though I was quite fast on the track, I will work towards finishing with a better time next year."
With more than 25,000 participants running across five categories, the run saw the likes of Rahul Bose, Kiran Mazumdar Shaw and Gul Panag put their best stride forward.
