Top 5 moments from the Mumbai Marathon

It was an eventful 12th Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon this past Sunday, one that saw a number of firsts and new faces do well. Though the temperatures rose a little on Sunday morning to add that bit of discomfort to runners, the event overall saw them gut it out with there being some real surprises from some of the Indian runners in the Elite category.

#1 Jaisha makes her debut with a bang

O.P. Jaisha (middle) poses with Lalita Babbar (left) and Sudha Singh

O.P. Jaisha of Kerala made her marathon debut in stunning fashion by running her way to the title amongst the elite Indian women. She set a blistering time of 2 hours, 37 minutes and 29 seconds to break the 19-year-old national record for women set by Vally Sathyabhama way back in December 1995 in Chennai.

The 3-time defending champion Lalita Babbar was thus prevented from making it four in a row in the process. Jaisha had been a medallist for India in the 1500 m and 3000 m at the Asian level, but no one expected her to make such a huge mark on her debut.

#2 Another debutant, another win - Tesfaye Abera

Tesfaye Abera, the winner in the men’s category was making his marathon debut as well

A debutant marathoner emerging victorious wasn’t just restricted to the Indian women. The overall men’s winner was also someone running a marathon for the first time. Ethiopia came with a solid contingent that was a threat to the Kenyan dominance, but Tesfaye Abera not only upstaged the Kenyans, but also his more experienced countrymen to emerge victorious.

He did so in a time of 02:09:46. His compatriot Dereje Debele finished second to make it an Ethiopian 1-2. Abera, who had previously run a maximum of only 15 km in a race, had this to say when asked what he would do with his prize money – "I will use the money to buy a house in my hometown."

#3 Dinknesh Mekash leads an Ethiopian rout

Dinknesh Mekash (centre) hits the finish line

Leading from start to finish, Ethiopia’s Dinknesh Mekash, the 2014 champion, triumphed again this year in the women’s Elite category, in the process leading an Ethiopian 1-7 to put an exclamation mark on their dominance at this year’s race. Post race however, Mekash was seen throwing up and in discomfort and she later revealed that she battled on despite not being 100%.

"I got a good start and it was my target to better my timing. But after the 35-km mark, I had acute pain in my back and ankle. I also had cramps in my abdominal region (and) that's when I decided to slow down a bit. Since I had crossed the 35km-mark, I didn't want to pull out, so I somehow finished the race. I am happy I completed the race and defended my title", said Mekash.

#4 Warrior contestant takes to the race

One of the more attractive costumed participants at the race

As with most marathons, the Mumbai marathon too had its fair share of costumed participants. This man looked ready to go to battle replete with the relevant gear and even a cardboard sword.

#5 Patriotism on show

A participant in the disabled category holds up the national flag

The ‘Champions with Disability’ race got off to a patriotic start as seen from the photo above. There were a number of participants who were carrying the tricolour signifying that the event in its most basic form was about people showing up without letting disability get in the way of what they wanted to do while wearing their affliations with pride.