TOP Zimbabwe long-distance runner Cuthbert Nyasango lifted the country’s flag high at the weekend after setting a new personal best time on his way to finishing ninth at the 66th edition of the Fukuoka International Marathon on Sunday.
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The 30-year-old long-striding Nyanga-born runner completed the fully subscribed gruelling race in a personal best time of two hours, 11 minutes and 48 seconds in the IAAF Gold Label Road Race.
Nyasango’s time was better than the 2 hours, 12 minutes and eight seconds he ran on his way to finishing an impressive seventh in the men’s marathon race at the London Olympic Games in August.
His new mark was, however, just shy of the national men’s marathon record time of 2 hours, 10 minutes and 57 seconds set by Tendai Chimusasa at the Hamburg Marathon in April 1998.
Nyasango is one of the local runners tipped to do well for Zimbabwe at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
The race was won by Joseph Gitau of Kenya in a time of 2hours, six minutes and 58 seconds.
