Deriba Merga retains Delhi Half Marathon title

NEW DELHI: Olympian Deriba Merga of Ethiopia defended the men's title, while Kenyan Mary Keitany won in the women's category of the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon on Sunday. ( Watch Video )

Merga, who faced some stiff competition from compatriot Eshetu Wendimu and last year's runner-up Wilson Kipsang of Kenya, clocked 59:54 minutes to cover the 21.097 km and bagged $25,000 winners' purse.

Wendimu (1.00.02) finished second, followed by Kipsang (1.00.04), who was much slower due to a toe injury this year.

Reigning world champion Keitany took 1 hour 6.54 minutes to touch the finish line with Ethiopian Ayelew Wude (1.07:58) coming second, followed by compatriot Aberu Kebede (1.07:59).

Meanwhile, Armyman Deepchand Saharan (1.04:00) finished first among Indian men and overall 17th in the race, while Uttar Pradesh's Sukanya Mall (1.20:11) was the fastest woman among Indians and 22nd overall.

Each of the Indian toppers would be richer by $4,000. Earlier, the Indian Olympics Association (IOA) chief Suresh Kalmadi flagged off the race that saw 8,429 participations, including 266 foreigners.