Why Alex Matata is crediting injured twin brother for dominant win in Delhi Half Marathon
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Reading Time: 2min | Wed. 15.10.25. | 15:50
The 28-year-old only confirmed his participation in the race just after his brother withdrew with a knee injury
Kenyan runner Alex Nzioka Matata says his injured brother was the reason he pushed himself to clinch victory in the 20th edition of the Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon on Sunday, 12 October.
A couple of weeks before the race in the Indian capital, Matata had not been expected to feature, but slotted in just after the news that his twin brother - Charles Mbatha Matata - had suffered a knee injury and withdrawn from the event.
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Presented with the opportunity to fly the family flag high, Alex did no wrong, as he ran a blistering second half of the race to win his fifth half-marathon win this year in a time of 59:50.
Speaking to Press Trust of India shortly after the victory, which guaranteed him Ksh3.4 million in prize money, Alex credited his brother’s energy saying: “ I feel my brother was representing me here. He (brother) was unwell, so I thought let me push myself to my level best and see what I can achieve.”
VIDEO | Kenya's Alex Matata, who clinched the men's title in the Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon, said he kept pushing himself throughout the race to bring joy to his brother, who could not travel with him due to illness.
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) October 12, 2025
Matata, who finished runner-up here last year, ran a… pic.twitter.com/aWA39snpjY
Thanks to the inner motivation, Alex went on to obliterate the rest of the elite men’s field, crossing the 10k mark alongside his teammate Reuben Rono in 28:43, before putting in a dominant performance that avenged his runners-up finish the previous year, when he lost the title to Uganda’s reigning Olympic 10,000, champion Joshua Cheptegei.
“Last year, I was number two, so my goal was to do better than that,” Alex said. “I knew the course, which was an advantage, and the weather was on my side. At the 10K mark, I felt I had a good chance of winning. It was one of my best performances, and this win is for my brother Charles, who was to compete here but could not because of an injury.”
Charles, ranked 98th in the world in men's road running, last ran a 10 kilometers road race in Colombia in August, finishing third.
He however, began his season on a high, winning two half marathons in Netherlands and China in March and April respectively.
Charles Matata wins the Beijing Half Marathon this year/Courtesy
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