Eighteen Pakistani competitors finished the 48th Istanbul Marathon on Sunday. Saqib Khan clocked 2 hours, 49 minutes and 33 seconds to emerge as the fastest Pakistani participant.
Saqib was the lone Pakistani athlete to complete the course in under three hours, taking the top spot among his countrymen. Muhammad Sajjad took second place in 3:17:29, and Iqbal Ali Khan placed third in 3:23:58.
Despite his comfortable finish, Saqib faced a difficult battle against Sajjad, who held the lead for a large part of the race.
Adjusted checkpoint timings show Sajjad led from the 15-kilometer mark to 30 kilometers. His lead was one minute and 51 seconds at the halfway point, grew to two minutes and four seconds at 25 kilometers, and hit six minutes and 17 seconds at 30 kilometers.
Saqib staged a strong recovery near the end, cutting the gap to 36 seconds at the 35-kilometer checkpoint before taking the lead.
By the 40-kilometer mark, Saqib established a 17-minute and 43-second advantage. The turning point happened between the 35 and 40-kilometer markers, where Saqib posted a split of 20:10 against Sajjad's 38:29.
Saqib crossed the finish line 27 minutes and 56 seconds ahead of Sajjad and 34 minutes and 25 seconds ahead of Iqbal Ali Khan.
Mehnaz Naveed led the women's category for Pakistan with a time of 4:52:06, while Sunaina finished the course in 5:59:40.
Complete Results of Pakistani Runners
The finishing times for all 18 Pakistani participants are listed below:
- Saqib Khan: 2:49:33
- Muhammad Sajjad: 3:17:29
- Iqbal Ali Khan: 3:23:58
- Irfan Ali: 3:52:47
- Kamran Yousaf: 4:02:19
- Muhammad Asad Siddiqi: 4:21:02
- Muhammad Zeeshan Ali: 4:28:40
- Adeel Mansoor Khan: 4:39:02
- Mehnaz Naveed: 4:52:06
- Muhammad Gulraiz Khan: 5:02:43
- Muhammad Asad Khan: 5:21:36
- Nofel Elahi: 5:35:11
- Qaseem Saeed: 5:42:13
- Muhammad Asher Siddiqi: 5:46:22
- Sunaina: 5:59:40
- Muhammad Jahanzaib Khan: 6:12:01
- Fahad Mansoori: 6:14:12
- Mohammad Arsal Ayub: 6:14:57
The Istanbul Marathon is recognized as the world's only intercontinental marathon, with participants crossing the Bosphorus from Asia to Europe before finishing at Sultanahmet Square.
In the elite competition, Kenya's Philimon Kiptoo Kipchumba won the men's race in a course-record time of 2:08:44, while Ethiopia's Kasanesh Ayenew Baze claimed the women's title in 2:24:40.
The event holds World Athletics Gold Label status.
