Hayle Lemi, the winner of the Tata Mumbai Marathon 2023, was all smiles as the Ethiopian stood on the podium to receive the gold medal after breaking the course record with a timing of 02:07:32sec breaking the previous best of 2:08:09 set by compatriot Derara Hurisa in 2021. The new record holder credited the weather for the stunning run.
"I am surprised to win, but the weather was perfect for running and it helped me a lot," said Lemi. When asked if he was vying for the record, Lemi said: "No it was not in my mind. I tried my best to just finish on podium."
Meanwhile, Kenyan Philemon Rono finished second with a timing of 02:08:44sec. After the finish, Rono said he was beaten fair and square by Lemi. "I was planning to get more closer to Lemi. But he got the better of me as he had studied me well," Rono said. Another Ethiopian Hailu Zewdu completed the podium the men's elite podium.
In the women's Elite category, Anchalem Haymanot emerged winner with time of 02:24:15sec. She was followed by Rahma Tusa (02:24:22sec). The third place was bagged by Letebrhan Haylay (02:24:52sec). Anchalem said: "This was my first marathon and I won gold. I was nervous regrading the weather and the conditions but I just stuck to the basic. My whole body was feeling good in the end so I went for the win."
Among the Indians, Gopi T (02:16:41sec) and Chavi Yadav (02:50:35sec) emerged winners in the men's and women's Elite category respectively. For Gopi, this was his first race in three years and the army man said victory boosted his confidence following a low phase. "After my surgery, I did not race for the last three years. I was low on confidence I was targetting below 10 finish. Credit goes to army who have been supporting me for the last three years," Gopi said.
