Delhi International Marathon
Encyclopedia
The Delhi Half Marathon is an annual half marathon
foot-race held in New Delhi
, India
. Established in 2005, it is both an elite runner and mass participation event. It is an AIMS
-certified course and is listed as a Gold Label Road Race by the IAAF. The 2009 event attracted around 29,000 runners who competed in one of the four races: the half marathon, the 7 km Great Delhi Run, a 4.3 km run for senior citizens, and a 3.5 km wheelchair race.
The half marathon is the elite runner race, while the Great Delhi Run attracts the majority of participants overall. The inaugural edition in 2005 had total prize money of US$310,000 to attract high calibre professional athletes. The prize for the winners of the men's and women's race was $25,000 dollars in 2009. The race was sponsored Hutchison Essar for its first two races, and the company sponsored the event as Vodafone Essar in 2007 following a takeover. Rival communications company Airtel held the sponsor role in 2008, 2009 and 2010.
The course starts in the Nehru Stadium, although this was temporarily moved to the grounds of the Central Secretariat while the stadium was under renovation for the 2010 Commonwealth Games
.
The race is largely flat and has delivered fast winning times in its short history, with men producing a number of sub-one hour times and women recording times under 1:08:00.
The race attracts culturally prominent supporters: Indian actors Arshad Warsi
and Rahul Bose
were present in 2010, while Sheila Dikshit
awarded prizes to the event winners. Actress Gul Panag
participated that year but criticised the attitude of the city's men after she was groped mid-race: "Delhi men won't let go of any opportunity to eve-tease or behave indecently. The people's mindset has not changed despite hosting a mega event like Commonwealth Games in October
and it is definitely not an ideal place for women".
Half marathon
A half marathon is a road running event of . It is half the distance of a marathon and usually run on roads. Participation in half marathons has grown steadily recently. One of the main reasons for this is that it is a challenging distance, but does not require the same level of training that a...
foot-race held in New Delhi
New Delhi
New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Established in 2005, it is both an elite runner and mass participation event. It is an AIMS
Association of International Marathons and Distance Races
The Association of International Marathons and Distance Races, also known as AIMS, is an association of long-distance running races. Originally founded in 1982 at a meeting in London of marathon race directors, its membership was extended in 1986 to include all road races...
-certified course and is listed as a Gold Label Road Race by the IAAF. The 2009 event attracted around 29,000 runners who competed in one of the four races: the half marathon, the 7 km Great Delhi Run, a 4.3 km run for senior citizens, and a 3.5 km wheelchair race.
The half marathon is the elite runner race, while the Great Delhi Run attracts the majority of participants overall. The inaugural edition in 2005 had total prize money of US$310,000 to attract high calibre professional athletes. The prize for the winners of the men's and women's race was $25,000 dollars in 2009. The race was sponsored Hutchison Essar for its first two races, and the company sponsored the event as Vodafone Essar in 2007 following a takeover. Rival communications company Airtel held the sponsor role in 2008, 2009 and 2010.
The course starts in the Nehru Stadium, although this was temporarily moved to the grounds of the Central Secretariat while the stadium was under renovation for the 2010 Commonwealth Games
2010 Commonwealth Games
The 2010 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XIX Commonwealth Games, were held in Delhi, India, from 3 to 14 October 2010. A total of 6,081 athletes from 71 Commonwealth nations and dependencies competed in 21 sports and 272 events, making it the largest Commonwealth Games till date...
.
The race is largely flat and has delivered fast winning times in its short history, with men producing a number of sub-one hour times and women recording times under 1:08:00.
The race attracts culturally prominent supporters: Indian actors Arshad Warsi
Arshad Warsi
Arshad Warsi is an Indian actor who debuted in 1996 with the film Tere Mere Sapne which was a success but he is best known for his role as "Circuit" in the comedy films Munnabhai M.B.B.S. and Lage Raho Munnabhai and his role as Babban in Ishqiya which won him acclaim.-Early life and...
and Rahul Bose
Rahul Bose
Rahul Bose is an Indian actor, screenwriter, director, social activist, and rugby union player.Bose has appeared in Hindi films such as Pyaar Ke Side Effects and Jhankaar Beats. Time magazine named him "the superstar of Indian arthouse cinema" for his work in parallel cinema films like English,...
were present in 2010, while Sheila Dikshit
Sheila Dikshit
Sheila Dikshit is the Chief Minister of Delhi. She is from the Indian National Congress. Dikshit was sworn in as the Chief Minister for a third consecutive term of the Government of Delhi state in January 2009 after pulling a victory in November 2008 state elections...
awarded prizes to the event winners. Actress Gul Panag
Gul Panag
Gul Panag is an Indian actress, model, and former beauty queen who competed in the Miss Universe pageant. Her notable films include Dor, Dhoop, Manorama Six Feet Under, Hello, and Straight....
participated that year but criticised the attitude of the city's men after she was groped mid-race: "Delhi men won't let go of any opportunity to eve-tease or behave indecently. The people's mindset has not changed despite hosting a mega event like Commonwealth Games in October
2010 Commonwealth Games
The 2010 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XIX Commonwealth Games, were held in Delhi, India, from 3 to 14 October 2010. A total of 6,081 athletes from 71 Commonwealth nations and dependencies competed in 21 sports and 272 events, making it the largest Commonwealth Games till date...
and it is definitely not an ideal place for women".
Past winners
Key:| Edition | Year | Men's winner | Time | Women's winner | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 2005 | 1:01:55 | 1:10:35 | ||
| 2nd | 2006 | 1:01:36 | 1:10:40 | ||
| 3rd | 2007 | 1:00:43 | 1:10:30 | ||
| 4th | 2008 | 59:15 | 1:08:17 | ||
| 5th | 2009 | 59:54 | 1:06:54 | ||
| 6th | 2010 | 59:38 | 1:08:35 | ||
| 7th | 2011 | 59:30 | 1:07:04 |