Ethiopians sweep the top prizes at Vadodara Half-Marathon

Ethiopia was the big winner as runners from the Africa country took home the top prizes at the Vadodara International Half-Marathon.

The Ethiopians finished in top three positions in both the men’s and women’s elite 21 km category.

Negewo Asera Mengstu finished first in a very, very tight men’s race just ahead of his compatriot in a time of 1 hour 3 minutes and 45 seconds. Keneni Ifa Balda came second just a second behind.

The winner took home prize money of Rs 2,50,000 while the runner-up received Rs 1,25,000.

The race was tight in the women’s section too with Gebreslasea Letbrahm from Ethiopia finishing the race in 1 hour 11 minutes and 37 seconds to finish first, just ahead of compatriot Glean Yewbdar Tesgome, who covered the distance in one hour 11 minutes and 40 seconds.

The winner’s in the women’s race received the same prize money as the men with Rs 2,50,000 for the winner and Rs 1,25,000 for the runner-up.

The event saw a huge turnout of over 12,000 participants. The event was flagged off by Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi at 7.30 am.

“When it comes to marathons, Vadodara has set a benchmark for cities. I congratulate all of you,” Modi told a cheering crowd.