Great India Run set for flag off
The Great India Run, the country’s first multi- city marathon, will be flagged off from India Gate in the capital on Sunday morning. The 1,480 km long run will feature 15 of the best ultra marathoners from Asia, Africa, United States of America and Europe in its inaugural edition.
As part of the ultra- marathon, the message of fitness to the nation will take the form of 5km fun runs at every stop ( Ghaziabad, Delhi, Gurgaon, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Silvassa and Mumbai) for beginners to inspire them to take up the sport as a regular activity. A 21k run will also be organised at Silvassa, which will fall in the special 570 km stretch that celebrity runner Milind Soman will be part of from Ahmedabad to Mumbai.
“For us, apart from running what also matters is exploring new landscapes and when you are presented with an opportunity to run in a magical country like India, its hard to let go off such an experience. I am glad that I am a part of the inaugural edition of The Great India Run and I am looking forward to meeting new people and making new friends in this journey,” said former Soviet Union national record holder Yuri Esperson.
The 15 runners who are scheduled to participate in the event are Arun Bhardwaj, Siddharth Choudhary, David Bredo, Yuri Esperson, Meenal Kotak, Ranjana Deopa, Sreekanth Reddi, Melanie Delainey, Dinesh Heda, Joginder Chandna, Pia Hansson, Sunil Sharma, Shweta Sharma, Kaushal Chauhan and Dhanaee Kumar.
India’s best known ultra marathoner, Bhardwaj, said the event would help people test their endurance and understand that nothing was impossible if they had the will.
“With the help of this run people can test their endurances and take inspiration from the ultra runners that when you have the will then even a 1480 km journey feels short,” said the national record holder.
Bhardwaj, who has earlier won the tough Badwater ultra marathon, said this race has its own challenge with the monsoon weather and pollution on highway roads.
“The road will itself be a challenge as smoke and noise on highways will make it difficult for runners. Moreover, the monsoon has made the race even tougher as there is a rise in humidity and it’s difficult to control body temperature in such weather,” the 46- year- old said.