Races
Interesting insights from the TCS Open 10K 2024 timing data
TCS World 10k Bengaluru 2024 had an all new course this year. We also saw a record number of finishers with a total of 13,767 (10,572 males and 3,195 females). First time ever in the history of TCS World 10K, the women finishers have crossed 3,000 mark.
As with our tradition at GeeksOnFeet, we have crunched the timing data of all the Open 10K finishers. Here are some of the insights, that we thought are interesting for everyone.
There’s a clear upward trend in the number of finishers over the years indicating the popularity of the event, and running as a way to keep fit and healthy.
While male participants consistently outnumber females, but the number of female finishers has shown notable growth, especially in recent years.
After a dip in 2022, participation rebounded strongly in 2023 and 2024, reaching over 13,000 finishers in both years. 2024, is the biggest event yet, with the number of finishers slightly increased from the previous year, with a total of 13,767 finishers (10,572 males and 3,195 females), indicating sustained interest and engagement in the event.
Youth Participation (15 to 19 years) is the lowest, with only 184 finishers (55 females and 129 males). That said this is the group that has the best gender distribution: 29.89% female, 70.11% male. Interesting to see the popularity of sport among the younger women runners.
30 to 34 years is the largest group with 2,587 finishers (612 females and 1,975 males). Interestingly, in Marathon and Half-marathon distances this category is not the largest, 40-45 years is typically the largest. TCS World 10K has always been popular among 30-34 years category.
Master’s age categories 55 & beyond see significantly less women participation.
A quick analysis of the winning times for female and male winners in the TCS World 10K Bengaluru from 2011 to 2024, show both female and male finish times have improved over the years.
The youngest age group (15 to 19 years) showcases impressive performance, especially among males, who have the fastest average finish time at 1:06:46. Female participants in this age group also perform well, averaging 1:19:53.
For males, peak performance is evident in the 40 to 44 years category with an average finish time of 1:09:30. For females, the 40 to 44 years category also marks one of the best average finish times at 1:21:23, indicating strong mid-age runners.
Both male and female participants show a trend of increasing finish times as age progresses. However, male participants in their 60s (60 to 64 years) maintain competitive times, comparable to much younger age groups, averaging 1:09:48.
Senior participants (65 years and above) continue to display commendable endurance and performance. Male finish times remain competitive at 1:13:22 to 1:14:11, while female finish times are generally slower.
One of the complaints across TCS World 10K editions has been the start-line management and the initial rush. We’ve look at the data to see what’s happening.
It took about 45 minutes for all the participants to cross the start line. Race started at 5:10 am, and the last of the open 10K participant crossed before 6 am.
About 1000 runners passed through the start-line mat in the very first minute of the race. 25% of all the open 10K participants passed through the mat in first 5 minutes of the race. As can be seen in the chart, the crowd hasn’t been uniformly distributed, which is primarily the reason for the rush.
The new course in 2024 is different from the previous years posing a challenge to the participants. The hills towards the end meant, many got slower in the second half. Only 11% of the runners finished with negative split, when compared to 35% in the prior years.
Interestingly 20 runners (0.15%) were able to finish with equal splits to the second.
Hope you have liked the insights. If you find any additional insights, please do write to us via email or through any of our social media channels.
Prepared by Team GeeksOnFeet for the love of running
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