The Garden City will be back on the world marathon map on December 16 with the Bangalore International Marathon scheduled to be held on that day.
The US $25000 prize money event, which is recognised by the Athletics Federation of India, is expected to draw nearly 20,000 participants — including entries from Kenya, Ethiopia, Morocco, UK , Sri Lanka, Thailand, Singapore and Hong Kong.
Announcing this at a press conference here, Karnataka Athletic Association Chairman D K Audikesavulu said:
“We are committed to promoting a marathon in Bangalore. The event will emphasise the value of physical activity and create a sense of well being among youngsters. To raise funds for charities, we have tied up with a couple of NGOs. On the occasion we plan to felicitate veteran sportspersons and sports journalists as well as offer scholarships to budding athletes.”
BSNL sponsor
The event, being conducted by the KAA, will have Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited as its main sponsor. The event includes full marathon (42.195km), half-marathon (21.097km), a dream run for the corporates (5km), senior citizens (5km) and a wheelchair event (2km).
This will be the third international marathon in Bangalore. The first two were conducted by Crossover, which ran into problems with the Athletics Federation of India prior to the second edition last year.
That meet as well as the subsequent midnight marathon organised by Crossover didn’t have AFI recognition.
Entry fee
While there will be no entry fee for the senior citizens’ run and wheelchair event, entry fee for full marathon and half-marathon has been fixed at Rs 100 and the for the dream run it is Rs 150. Apart from the prize money, an additional bonus is on cards for those who break records in full Marathon and half-marathon.
Speaking on the occasion, former athlete and Arjuna awardee Ashwini Nachappa said: “Marathon is a platform to encourage young and the old. A sense of fitness mania has already crept into Bangaloreans and we hope the event is a success.”
A free marathon training camp will be held under former international marathoners at the Sree Kanteerava stadium from December 5 to 15. The official logo of the event will be unveiled on December 4 and the entry forms can be downloaded from the website www.bangaloreinternationalmarathon.in.
