IT HAPPENS ONLY IN INDIA: L Aruna Devi was the first Indian to complete the full marathon but the organisers did not identify her as the winner initially probably because she looks like a foreigner. PICS/ATUL KAMBLE, Shadab Khan

L Aruna Devi was not identified as the winner initially as many thought she was a foreigner

INDIA'S diversity has always been cherished. But sometimes, it can be a disadvantage too as was the case in a bizarre incident at the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon yesterday.

Manipur's L Aruna Devi was the first Indian woman to cross the finish line in the full marathon but she had to wait for her prize. Indresh Dhiraj, Leelamma Alphanso and Kiran Dhiraj were felicitated as the top three Indians.

The reason? Aruna believes nobody recognised her as an Indian when she crossed the finish line.

"Since I am a Manipuri, the confusion could have happened. When I was running, I could hear people on the streets saying 'dekho Japanese aayee' and things like that. But my name is also on the bib. I'm surprised nobody recognised me," 31-year-old Aruna said.

No help too
"I knew I had won but there was no one to help me at the finish line. After I took some rest I told someone that I am India No 1 and asked them to help me relax. She massaged me a little and took me to a room where the Indian athletes were kept. Afterwards when I felt okay, I asked her whether the prize distribution was over.
"I was really sad that I could not go on the podium to collect my medal. This was my first race in Mumbai and it could have been a memorable experience," added the Eastern Railways athlete, who was running only her second marathon. "I did not have sufficient training. I am basically a 10,000m runner. But, I am enjoying marathons," said the three-time Asian Games medallist, who has set the national record in 10,000m clocking 34:30:02.

Veteran athlete Leelamma, who ran the last race of her career yesterday, said the officials should be more careful before deciding the winner. "Such things should be handled with care. They are young athletes and sometimes such goof-ups can break their spirit," she said.

IT HAPPENS ONLY IN INDIA: L Aruna Devi was the first Indian to complete the full marathon but the organisers did not identify her as the winner initially probably because she looks like a foreigner. PICS/ATUL KAMBLE, Shadab Khan