Rugut wins Delhi Half-Marathon

New Delhi:

The Delhi Half-Marathon finally ran its course today with 20,000 people participating in the event. The men's event was dominated by the Kenyans with Philip Rugut winning the 21-km race with a timing of 1:01:54 seconds. The Kenyan contingent came in to the Delhi Half Marathon with a lot of expectations and an eye on the $300,000 prize kitty. Rugut might have finished third last year but there was no stopping him today as he stomped his way to victory. He finished 40 seconds ahead of his compatriot Duncan Kibet who came second. Martin Sulla of Tanzania finished third. Women's category The Kenyan juggernaut was halted in the women's category though. Russian Irinia Timofeyeva took 1 hour and 10.35 seconds to finish first. She was closely followed by compatriot Inga Abitova who clocked 1:10:41 seconds. Kenya's Edith Masai was two seconds behind to finish third. The Indians didn't have too much to cheer about. Jagannath Lakde could finish only 16th but still managed to pick up the top Indian men's prize of $2,500 while H Sangini Devi was the top finisher amongst Indian women in 18th position. The strong crowd turnout proved that the 21-km race and its spin-offs like the 7-km dream run and the Senior Citizens' run are gaining in popularity. (With PTI inputs)