Tanahun, February 18
Stephen Kosgei of Kenya defended the title of the Safal Pokhara International Marathon here today.
Kosgei completed the 42.195km distance in two hours, 20 minutes and seven seconds to finish first ahead of fellow Kenyan athlete Julius Kariuki came second in 2:20:37, while Tribhuvan Army Club's Homlal Shrestha was a distant third in 2:25:14.
Top three athletes received Rs 500,000, Rs 300,000 and Rs 200,000 respectively.
Another Kenyan athlete Simon came fourth and he received consolation prize of Rs 30,000. A total of 200 athletes including 29 foreigners took part in the event.
In women's half marathon, Nepal Police Club athlete Rajpura Pachhai completed hat-trick with her third straight victory. She completed the 21km race in one hour, 21 minutes and 11 seconds. Nepal APF Club's Brinba Shrestha came second in 1:56:38, while TAC's Purna Laxmi Neupane was third in 1:26:49. Top three athletes received Rs 150,000, Rs 100,000 and Rs 75,000 respectively.
NPC's Rekha Bista won consolation prize of Rs 15,000.
APF athlete Asha Raut won 10km race in 50 minutes and 12 seconds, finishing ahead of NPC's Brishma Kumal and TAC's Kalpana Khadka. In men's section, TAC duo Sanjay Shrestha and Subash Karki, and Deepak Sunang of Panchthar claimed top three spots.
Top three athletes in both sections received Rs 30,000, Rs 20,000 and Rs 15,000 respectively.
Meanwhile, Hundreds of enthusiasts and athletes joined Gandaki Province Chief Minister Khagaraj Adhikari and Pokhara Municipality Mayor Dhana Raj Acharya in the 5km Run For Fun event.
A version of this article appears in the print on February 19, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.
