Srinu Bugatha clocked a personal best to comfortably win the sixth edition of the New Delhi Marathon while Asian Games gold medallist Sudha Singh bagged the top honours in the women’s category, in New Delhi on Sunday.

Bugatha clocked a personal best of 2 hours 14 minutes and 59 seconds which was shy of the 2 hours 11 minutes and 30 seconds that he was targeting to earn himself a run in the Tokyo Olympics.

Sudha, who was aiming for her own hat-trick of Olympic appearances, won the women’s title in 2:43:41. That was, however, off the national record of 2:30.00 which would have earned her a ticket to Tokyo.

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Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju, who presided over the prize-distribution ceremony, exhorted both of them to continue to chase their dreams of representing the country at the upcoming Olympics.

“I congratulate you for your victories and your efforts to attain the qualifying mark. I am sure your hard work will soon get the desired results and that you will do it in the near future as you get into your rhythm,” Rijiju said.

Uttarakhand’s Nitendra Singh Rawat (2:18:54) and Army Sports Institute’s Rashpal Singh (2:18:57) clinched the silver and bronze medal in the men’s elite category, while Maharashtra’s Jyoti Gawate (2:58:23) and Ladakh’s Jigmet Dolma (3:04:52) emulated them among the women.

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“I was feeling good all along,” Bugatha said, after his exhilarating run.

“It is disappointing not to make it after coming so close but I am pleased with myself and am confident that I will soon attain the qualifying mark,” he added.

Results

Marathon elite men: 1. Srinu Bugatha (2:14:59); 2. Nitendra Singh Rawat (2:18:54); 3. Rashpal Singh (2:18:57)

Marathon elite women: 1. Sudha Singh (2:43:41); 2. Jyoti Gawate (2:58:23); 3. Jigmet Dolma (3:04:53)

Half Marathon men: 1. Amar Singh Devanda (1:13:58); 2. Dhananjay Sharma (1:15:33); 3. Sangh Priya Gautam (1:16:35)

Half Marathon women: 1. Jyoti Chauhan (1:20:57); 2. Pooja (1:28:39); 3. Tashi Ladol (1:30:13).