Bengaluru World 10K: Naveen, Saigeeta triumph in the Elite Indian segment

Naveen Kumar of the Indian Army and Saigeeta Naik of Maharashtra Police clinched the men’s and women’s titles in the Elite Indian segment of the 10th TCS World 10K on Sunday.

In the men’s section, Naveen, the 2014 Asian Games bronze medallist in 3000M steeplechase, stole the show with a well planned run to win the race in 30 minutes and 56 seconds.

Sandeep Tayade of the Indian Air Force came in second in 31 minutes and two seconds, while Shankar Man Thapa of the Indian Army was third in 31 minutes and seven seconds.

Naveen, who trains at the SAI centre in Bengaluru, entered the fray early this morning with the sole ambition of winning. “I was like, if I get a chance, I would run to win,” he said.

The Army man started his race tagging along with the others in his pack and banked on their pace. Around the eight kilometre mark, he kicked hard to move ahead and worked up a comfortable lead, helping him to the finish line without much fuss.

“This win is a confidence booster for me. I hope to return for a better time,” said Naveen, who became richer by Rs 2,50,000 on his road racing debut.

Tayade, who stayed on Naveen’s heels for most of the race, with both of them clocking similar times through the first seven kilometres, was surprised by his second-place finish.

“Today my body just felt good and I decided to go with the flow. When we hit the eight-kilometre mark, I believed that I could be amongst the top 4 but it was only when I entered the stadium I started pushing for the podium. The silver medal is a pleasant surprise,” Tayade said.

In the women’s section, Saigeeta put up a controlled show, slowly building a lead and eventually holding on to it for the title. She clocked 36 minutes and one second for the gold medal, while Kiran Sahdev of the Railways came second in 36 minutes and 30 seconds. Preenu Yadav was third in 36 minutes and 46 seconds.