8 SAG golds for Nepal on Day 3
KATHMANDU, Dec 4: Santoshi Shrestha became the first female runner of Nepal to win an international gold in athletics following victory in the 10,000 meter race Tuesday at the ongoing 13th SAG in Kathmandu. 

On the first day of the athletics at Dasharath Stadium, Shrestha finished ahead of India’s Kavita Yadav by the smallest of margins of 10 milliseconds to claim the very first gold medal for Nepal in the medium run category.  Earlier, Nepal’s Kanchhi Maya Koju had won a silver medal in the 2006 SAG held in Sri Lanka. 

Shrestha completed the distance in 35:07.94 minutes, outpacing Yadav, who finished on 35:07.95 minutes. Likewise, Sri Lanka’s Nilanthi Lanka won the bronze medal with the timing of 35:59:02 minutes. 

The run was dominated by Yadav and Shrestha, leaving the others competitors way back. For the top two it was neck and neck all the way, with Shrestha crossing the finish line barely ahead of Yadav. 

A delighted Shrestha expressed her happiness on winning the first gold for the country, admitting that she was far from certain she’d win. “I always said I’ll give my best and the outcome will happen when I give my 100%. I was working hard in order to win the gold medal, but I was not completely sure if I’d be able to,’’ she said. 

 
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