Anjali Saraogi wins Kolkata Full Marathon 2020 for third straight year

Kolkata’s Anjali Saraogi stamped her authority at the IDBI Federal Life Insurance Kolkata Full Marathon yet again, as she won the race for the third time on the trot on Sunday here at the iconic Rangers Ground.

The 46-years-old who is also India’s fastest 100k female runner posted a time of 03:24.02 to clinch the gold medal and was unbeatable on the day. Sarogi in the process became the first runner to clinch a hat-trick of titles at the Kolkata Full Marathon.

Also Read: The thrills of running a marathon

Sarogi’s city-mate Sunmul Rahman,

an entrepreneur by profession, came second with a timing of 03:44.12 hours,

while Meghalaya’s Snora Lyngkhoi finished with a time of 03:46:48 hours to win

the bronze medal.

Lucknow’s Awadh Narayan Yadav,

winner of multiple marathons across the country underlined his supremacy in the

men’s category clinching the top position with a timing of 02:30:30 hours

followed by Tlanding Wahlang of Meghalaya who clocked 02:30:51 to finish the

42.2kms run. Another Meghalaya runner Batsrang A Sangma had to contend with the

third place for his efforts of 02:31:43 hours.

Over 12,000 runners lined up at

the starting line on a cold Sunday morning, in four different categories

including the Full Marathon, Half Marathon, Timed 10k Run and the 5k Fun Run.

Legendary Indian cricketer and IDBI Federal Life Insurance brand ambassador

Sachin Tendulkar flagged-off all the races and honoured the winners too later

in the day. He also encouraged the runners from the stage by giving an

inspiring rendition and obliged them with selfies as well.

While the Full Marathon turned

out to be a one-sided affair, the half marathons in both male and female

categories proved to be a thrilling affair. In the men’s event, Hari Singh

staved off a stiff challenge from L R Luther to emerge victorious. He finished

the run in a time of 01:09:00 hours, just 11 seconds ahead of Luther, while Kresstarjune

Pathaw finished third with a time of 1:09:55 hours.

In the women’s category, Sabina

Khatun stole the limelight, winning the gold medal by posting a time of

01:31:25 hours, trailed by Dateibankynmaw Marwein (01:33:25 hours) and Anita

Das (01:36:03 hours).