The Gold Label status given to the Tata Mumbai Marathon by the IAAF will result in the leading finishers in men and women’s elite categories in Sunday’s race coming into the reckoning for places among qualifiers for the 2019 World athletics championships in Doha. The qualifying standard is 2:16:00s for men and 2:37:00s for women.
IAAF is targeting 100 marathoners to be on the starting line at the Worlds, within a certified qualification period (up to September 6, 2019), so those with better season’s bests will get more opportunities, beyond the Mumbai Marathon.
Window of opportunity
For Indian runners, racing in familiar conditions, the TMM is a window of opportunity to show the world the quality at home in distance-running,
For the course record-holders among Indian men and women (2:15:48 by Nitendra Rawat, 2:50:31 by Lalita Babar), the focus will alternate from the electronic timing display to the designated pace-setters pushing them towards faster timings.
Lalita is not running this year, Nitendra is among favourites in 2019. He was beaten to second best among Indians finishing the race by Army Sports Institute teammate Thonakal Gopi, both took part in the Rio Olympics.
India’s 3000m steeplechase runner, Sudha Singh, has taken on the mantle from Lalita in the women’s ranks and is credited with a personal best 2:35:35 recorded against the world’s best in the 2015 World athletics.
Last year, pacing herself against Olympics marathoner from South Africa, Hendrik Ramalaa, invited by organiser Procam International, to set the pace for women, the steeplechase ace finished seventh overall, clocking 2:48:32.
The Indian steeplechaser-turned-marathoner will need to clock her personal best to be among the 100 marathoners on the IAAF shortlist for Doha.
Going by overall timings in Mumbai last year, only women’s champion Amane Gobena (Ethiopia, 2:25:49) displayed World championship quality.
According to the official entry list, the Ethiopian is defending her title in 2019 and with a personal best 2:21:51 clocked at Tokyo Marathon 2016, is the number one in the women’s pack.
Tougher field
The men’s field was tough for Gopi and Rawat last year, as the first nine in TMM 2018 went under 2:16 (Doha qualifying time). World-class competition is far superior a year later, the 2019 official entry list shows Ethiopian Abarra Kuma (personal best 2:05:50 at Rotterdam 2018) as the fastest in the fray.
Pace-setters and the elite runners in the lead pack will tire out many, the two Indian Olympians and teammates need to hang in there till the finish.
