After spending days of training here in Beijing, Marathoner Niluka Geethani Rajasekara will have her chance to shine in the Women’s Marathon at the 15th IAAF World Championship which will be concluded today at the Bird’s Nest, Beijing, China.
Rajasekara who has a personal best of 2 hours 40 minutes and 07 seconds when she finished fifth in the last Asian Marathon Championship in Hong Kong, will be eyeing to compete with the world’s best in her third outing at the marathon, which will also be her first on the world stage. Rajasekara who is already through to the Olympics next year, will have a good opportunity to see her competitors at close quarters in Beijing, while also eyeing a personal best with a top 10 finish.
“My aim is to clocked 2 hours and 25 minutes. The Beijing heat is messing marathons up, which we saw in the men’s marathon. So there could be a chance for me to shine” said an optimistic Niluka who was excited about going out there.
The marathon starts after 7.00 p.m. which is unusual on the world stage, as it was the practice to start these races as early as possible to avoid the heat, though it seems the Chinese do things in their own way with reasons which is to avoid the heat, which only they can understand.
“Beijing heat messed up the men’s marathon. In that marathon many top runners, including the world record holder, gave up the race. I have practiced a little running in the heat, but since I trained in Diyathalawa the last few months my body will have to adjust to the change. But my first race where I set the Sri Lanka record was run from Colombo to Negombo under similar heat conditions, and this might work out in my favour” said Niluka.
Kenyan Edna Kiplagat wil be the favourite walking into the marathon as she is eying her third consecutive title. Unlike many others she is used to conditions prevailing in Beijing, as both of her past world championship victories were achieved in hot conditions. She will be challenged by Ethiopia’s Mare Dibaba who has run the fastest marathon this year. The 25-year-old won the Xiamen Marathon in January in a world-leading 2:19:52, equaling the PB she set in 2012. Asian Games Champion Eunice Kirwa from Bahrain, who has a winning streak of 7 races leading up to Beijing, is another strong challenger.
Meanwhile, the 4X400m relay has been lined up for this evening, which is a traditional strong suit of USA, even though they are a bit shaky in relays recently. Women’s 5000m and men’s 1500m are also lined up for the day where Kenya will be eyeing to top the medal tally. The Men’s High Jump and Women’s Javelin throw finals are the other events lined up for the day.
