Gopi, Sudha aim to attain World Championship qualifying time

Mumbai: Last year’s top Indian finishers, Gopi Thonakal and Sudha Singh, are aiming to attain the qualifying standards for men and women set for this year’s World Championship in Doha, Qatar, when they run in the Tata Mumbai Marathon on January 20. 

The men’s qualifying mark has been set at 2:15:00 by the world athletics governing body IAAF, while the women have to clock 2:37:00 to qualify for the Doha World Championships scheduled from September 27-October 6. 

Both Gopi, the reigning Asian Champion in the 42.195- km race, and 3,000m steeplechase specialist Sudha Friday expressed confidence 
of attaining the IAAF-set marks when taking part in the 16th edition of the Mumbai Marathon. 

“I am training well on my own and have fully recovered from the hamstring injury that I sustained two-three weeks ago. I am aiming to attain 2:15 and qualify for the World Championships,” Gopi told reporters here. 

“Participation in Mumbai Marathon was the turning point in my life and I have gained a lot of confidence by winning the Asian title in 2017,” said Gopi, who had clocked 2:15:48 in the Asian championship in China to become the first Indian to clinch the continental crown.