Central Railway ticket collector, Manisha Salunkhe hopes to provide basic comfort to her mother, who struggled to raise her and her brother, with her Rs 75,000 cash prize at the Mumbai half marathon
Manisha Salunkhe
Even though Manisha Salunkhe missed the first place by a couple of minutes in women's half marathon, she wasn't dejected.
Manisha Salunkhe. Pic/Atul Kamble
There were enough reasons for Salunkhe to be content with her second-place finish behind Monika Raut (1:17:20). Salunkhe, a Central Railway ticket collector in Pune, clocked her personal best of 1:19:17 and it was also her first podium finish at the Mumbai Marathon yesterday.
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However, Salunkhe's biggest takeaway from the Mumbai Marathon was the R75,000 purse with which she hopes to provide basic comfort to her mother.
"My mother does odd jobs and earns around R3,000 per month. I will give my prize money to her, as it will be very useful for her. She has struggled a lot in bringing up my brother and myself after my father passed away in 2000. It is because of her that I have reached to this stage. She has always encouraged me," said Salunkhe.
The half marathon wasn't a smooth ride for Salunkhe though. "After six kilometres, there was severe pain in my stomach. I dropped down my speed, but continued running," she said.
Meanwhile, top finisher Raut was delighted to end up on the podium this time. "I have never been on the podium in Mumbai. This win will boost my confidence," said an excited Raut.
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