New Delhi, Oct 18: Kenya's Charles Matata shattered the course record to win the men's elite race at the Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon, while Ethiopia's Wudinesh Alemu took the women's crown as nearly 40,000 people turned up on the streets of the national capital on Sunday morning.
Matata clocked 58 minutes and 52 seconds to complete the 21.097 km distance at the iconic Jawahar Lal Nehru Stadium and better the previous course record of 58:53, set by Ethiopia's Amedework Walelegn in 2020, by one second. It was also Matata's personal best in the half marathon, bettering his earlier PB of 59:15 recorded in May this year.
The 29-year-old Matata's feat of setting a new course record was noteworthy as the humidity was high at around 90 per cent and the temperature of around 21 degrees Celsius was not ideal for long-distance running. He finished second here in the 2023 edition with a time of 1:00:05.
Matata earns bonus for course record
He will pocket an additional USD 12,000 (Rs 11,39,586) for breaking the event record of one of Asia's premier road races, besides the winner's purse of USD 27,000 (Rs 25,64,068).
Matata’s twin brother, Alex, had won the 2025 edition with a time of 59 minutes and 50 seconds.
Earlier in May, Charles won the title at the Riga Half Marathon in Latvia with a time of 59:15. Before that, in April, he finished second at the Istanbul Half Marathon after being edged out by Alex in a photo finish, with both being credited with a time of 60:01. He won the Beijing Half Marathon last year.
Kenyan runners sweep men's podium
Kenyans swept the top three positions in the men's elite race, with Samwel Nyamai Mailu (59:24) and Stanley Waithaka Mburu (59:33) finishing second and third, respectively.
In the women's elite race, Alemu clocked one hour, six minutes and 35 seconds to win the title. Kenyans Selah Businei (1:07:01) and Cynthia Chelangat Chepkwony (1:07:32) finished second and third, respectively.
Kushwaha and Dhyani lead Indian runners
Shailesh Kushwaha won the men's Indian elite race with a time of one hour, five minutes and five seconds, while Gaurav Mathur (1:05:11) and Hemant Kumar (1:05:37) finished second and third, respectively.
Among Indian elite women, Ankita Dhyani took the top spot with a time of one hour, 12 minutes and 46 seconds, while Soniya (1:14:56) and Bhagirathi (1:15:51) finished second and third, respectively.
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Prize money and race certification
The 2026 edition of the Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon, a World Athletics Gold Label Race, offered a total prize purse of USD 275,732, with the men's and women's winners each receiving USD 27,000. The race is also certified by the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS).
The top three finishers in the Indian elite men's and women's categories will receive Rs 3,50,000, Rs 2,50,000 and Rs 1,50,000, respectively.
Nearly 40,000 Delhiites turned up
Nearly 40,000 Delhiites turned up
(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by FPJ's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)
