Bangalore: Legendary track and field sprinter Milkha Singh flagged off the inaugural ‘IBM Bluemix Monsoon Marathon 2014’ – India’s first-of-its-kind run in the rain – along with Milind Soman, avid runner and fitness enthusiast, from St. Joseph’s Convent Grounds at 6 am on September 2.
Around 1500 Bangaloreans participate in unique and first-of-its-kind run in the rain running event. The event received exceptional expression of support with the participation of more than 1,500 Bangaloreans from different walks of life. Organised by Maximus Events & Crowd Strings, India’s leading event solutions companies, the IBM Bluemix Monsoon Marathon is a social event to encourage fitness enthusiasts to persevere with their fitness routine during the monsoon season.
For the unique initiative, Maximus Events & Crowd Strings joined hands with IBM Bluemix an application development platform on IBM cloud, the title sponsor, of the Monsoon Marathon. The Marathon also received support from Red FM, Manipal Hospital, Harman JBL & Decathlon, Harman the Radio, Medical, Supported by & Sports partners respectively.
Nanjundappa (1hr and 11 mins) emerged as the proud winner of the 21k Men’s run followed by Farid Ahmed (1hr 30 mins) and Thomas Philip (1hr 31mins). In the closely fought 21k Women’s run Amrita Mitra (1hr 42min) bagged first place followed by Bhagwati (1hr 46mins) and Ankita Gaur (1hr 55mins). J Vigneshwaran (37mins 34secs) won the men’s 10K run followed by Karan Rayadurg (37mins 46sec) and Shiv Prasad (39mins 07secs). While in the Woman’s 10K run Mahalakshmi (44mins 28secs) came in at first place followed by Bhumika Patel (49mins 31secs) and Shilpa Deo (50mins 17secs). In the Men’s 5K run Ganesh N (20mins 22secs) won the first place followed by Sukesh Amin (22mins 22secs) and Suraj Singh (23mins 20secs). The Women’s 5k run saw Tejaswi (25mins 10secs) take home first place followed by Harshini (26mins 06secs) and Shruti Kakubal (34mins 44secs) in the multi-category running event.
Milkha Singh, Legendary Indian Sprinter & Face of the bluemix.net Monsoon Marathon 2014 said, “I am extremely proud to be part of such a distinct event that influences Indians to keep themselves fit. Through the event, we are encouraging runners to continue with their exercise routine regardless of the season and weather. Over 1500 Bangaloreans came out to participate in the bluemix.net Monsoon Marathon today – a spectacular sight to see. The world’s leading athletes and runners train and prepare in all kinds of weather, becoming tougher and better in the process. I hope this influences more Indians to keep themselves fit around the year.”
Milind Soman, a fitness enthusiast and founder of Pinkathon, the international running event encouraging women’s health and fitness and creating much-needed awareness against breast cancer, said, “I am thrilled to see Bangalore’s response to the Monsoon Marathon. I would like to thank every individual and sponsor who has supported this unique event. Without them, breaking the myth that outdoor fitness routines do not have to get hampered during the monsoon would have been a very difficult task. I hope the event has impacted not only the participants but also other fitness enthusiasts in the city and beyond.”
Reema Sanghavi, Managing Director, Maximus MICE & Media Solutions Pvt. Ltd. said, “We are happy to receive such an overwhelming response from Bangalore for the first edition of the Bluemix Monsoon Marathon and look forward to creating many more such platforms across India to encourage change. I am grateful to each participant who has taken time out to come forward, spread the word, and help achieve our goal. Maximus is delighted to be a part of this social initiative, which is helping change lives for the better.”
All proceeds from the Bluemix.net Monsoon Marathon will go towards raising funds for United Sisters Foundation that supports the cause of Women’s Empowerment and Health.
