When Mumbai runs, the world will watch!!!!

By Sanket ‘stunned by length of the half marathon itself’ Kambli

Marathon made it its entry into the minds of many Indians, with the Mumbai Marathon 2004. And the marathon is back in Mumbai, and is set to capture our imagination once again. The city's showcase to the world, the third edition of the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon, slated for Sunday, January 15, 2006 was officially announced by Mr. Jaspal Bindra, General Manager - South East Asia and Mr. Neeraj Swaroop, Chief Executive Officer of Standard Chartered Bank - the title sponsor, in the presence of Shri Suresh Kalmadi, President of the Athletic Federation of India and Indian Olympic Association, Prashant Ruia of Essar, the Associate Sponsor, the key visionaries, whose contribution has put Mumbai on the global sporting map. "We are very happy to see the scale, the community involvement and the participation by national and international athletes achieved for the event. It is remarkable to be touted amongst the top 10 marathons in the world in a short span of 2 years" said Jaspal Bindra - GM, South East Asia, Standard Chartered Bank. "Being part of the Greatest Race On Earth (GROE) has further added to the international appeal and participation by the top ranked world athletes", he added. Neeraj Swaroop - CEO India, Standard Chartered Bank said, "The increase in number of participants will allow us to accommodate and engage more people with the event. I'm sure that we will provide even a greater experience this year." This year the organizers of the events, Procam International, have decided to increase the total number of entries that will be accepted vis-à-vis the first two years, this is because, in the second year many marathon aficionado turned away as running places were filled up much before the final day of registration. The race categories for the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon 2006 will be as follows:
Full Marathon (42.195kms)
Half Marathon (21.097kms)
Dream Run (7kms)
Sr. Citizens' Run (5kms)
Wheelchair Event (3.5kms)
A maximum of 3500 running places will be offered for the Full Marathon, while 6000 places will be available for the Half Marathon. The Dream Run will house 12,500 participants and 2,500 places will be set aside for the Corporate Challenge. 3000 entries will be permitted in the Senior Citizens' Run. 100 entries will be accepted for the Wheelchair Event, the total number of participants exceeding 27,500, which is over 2,500 more than the first two years. USD 210,000 worth of prize money is at stake. And if anyone thought that this would be just a national affair, they are fairly wrong, there will be over 130 GROE teams participating, compared to 61 teams from last year. The Nations Teams will have representation from 32 countries, including newcomers from Japan, China, Jordan, Finland, Ukraine, Denmark and Switzerland -- making this a truly global event.
The people of Mumbai and India broke all records by their unprompted and uninhibited retort to the charity drive, which is a vital initiative of the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon.
The first year saw Rs 1.5 crore collected for charity, a figure that leapfrogged to Rs 4.5 crore in 2005.
Give India, the official Charity Partner to the Event is confident of comfortably crossing that figure this time around.
Here we should give hats off salute not only to the organizers but also to the volunteers who sweat to make this event a success.
And all those who volunteer to run for a cause and provoke others to contribute for a cause, be it, businessmen or college students, has brought to the fore their social conscience. Many may be skeptical of this approach, but like they say where there is a will, there is a way. And in keeping with the tradition of this proverb, the organizers have incorporated a senior citizens and wheelchair category. This event is surely a symbol of various facets of our indomitable spirit, whose facets include charity to endurance.
The 3rd Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon to be held on January 15th, 2006.
Title Sponsor: Standard Chartered Bank
Associate Sponsor: Essar
Supported by: Government of Maharashtra
Under the Aegis of: Athletic Federation of India
Promoted by: Procam International