Leh, Sep 13 (PTI) She started from the backend of the Marathon, while her competitor Saraswati Rai had the front line advantage, but Stanzil Dolkar knew she had the knowledge of the mountains.
Hailing from Lamayuru district of Ladakh, Stanzil used her knowledge and experience of running on the mountains to get the better of Saraswati as she clinched victory from the jaws of imminent defeat.
Saraswati led for most part of the Marathon race only to be outfoxed by Stanzil towards the end. Stanzil won the race with an impressive timing of 3 hours, 32 minutes and 58 seconds.
“In the beginning, I had a little problem with timing because the race had already started. I also got a little crowded. Then I adjusted. I met Saraswati after 6.57 km. After that, I tackled her. When I reached 6 km, I had a little headache. I had back pain,” Stanzil told PTI after her victory.
She informed that she was running in Ladakh for the first time despite being a local champion long distance runner.
“I have run with her for the first time in the Ladakh Marathon. My target was 3:10, but after 30 km, I had a headache and back pain. It was a little difficult. It was my first time in Ladakh Marathon. It was my first experience.
“I had run in Delhi once before. My timing was good. I ran in the elite category. My timing was 3:04.This time, my target was 3:10. I had a physical problem, so my timing was not good. My timing was lower than my target,” she added She, however, accepted that running in Ladakh region was not easy for non Ladakhis “It is a little difficult for Saraswati as I train here. It is not that difficult for me here. But when we go down, it is difficult for us to acclimatize. It is a little difficult because of the humidity outside. Here, we are used to it, so it is not that difficult,” she noted.
She said she would be participating in Delhi Half Marathon next month. PTI SR PDS
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