Kathmandu, Nepal, March 27, 2021: The President of Nepal Olympic Committee, Hon. Jeevan Ram Shrestha, has on behalf of the NOC presented marathon runner Gopichandra Parki with running equipment as he prepares for the Tokyo Olympics.
Parki is the only Nepalese athlete to have a confirmed ticket to the re-scheduled Tokyo 2020 Olympics from July 23-August 8. Parki finished first in the Nepalgunj Marathon on November 21, 2020.
After presenting Parki with training shoes, spikes and running shoes, President Shrestha said: “He must aim to break the South Asian Games record held by Baikuntha Manandhar. Our best wishes to Gopichandra Parki and coach Santosh Shrestha.”
Nepal’s Manandhar holds the marathon record at the South Asian Games, winning the blue riband race at the 1987 showpiece in a time of two hours 15 minutes and three seconds.
With the help of Nepal NOC, Parki and his coach will train for three months before the Olympics in Hokkaido, northern Japan.
Also present at the handing over of the running equipment were NOC Secretary General Nilendra Raj Shrestha and NOC Vice President Chaturanada Raj Baidhya.
