Ethiopia's Merga retains Delhi Half Marathon title

VICTORIOUS: Olympian Deriba Merga has bagged the winning amount of $25,000.

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New Delhi: Olympian Deriba Merga of Ethiopia defended the men’s title, while Kenyan Mary Keitany won in the women’s category of the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon in Delhi on Sunday.

Merga, who faced some stiff competition from compatriot Eshetu Wendimu and last year’s runner-up Wilson Kipsang of Kenya, clocked 59:54 minutes to cover the 21.097 km and bagged $25,000 winners’ purse.

Wendimu (1.00.02) finished second, followed by Kipsang (1.00.04), who was much slower due to a toe injury this year.

Reigning world champion Keitany took one hour 6.54 minutes to touch the finish line with Ethiopian Ayelew Wude (1.07:58) coming second, followed by compatriot Aberu Kebede (1.07:59).

Meanwhile, Armyman Deepchand Saharan (1.04:00) finished first among Indian men and overall 17th in the race, while Uttar Pradesh's Sukanya Mall (1.20:11) was the fastest woman among Indians and 22nd overall.

Each of the Indian toppers would be richer by $4,000. Earlier, the Indian Olympics Association (IOA) chief Suresh Kalmadi flagged off the race that saw 8,429 participations, including 266 foreigners.