A Look Back at the 2006 Mumbai Marathon

There were some who were delighted to see their city roads free of vehicular traffic, so clear and clean. Others kept their spirits up and body going thinking about the funds they would raise for their favorite charity. Still more just concentrated on the task at hand - running!

On January 15, in the early hours of the morning, 30,000 people assembled to participate in the Standard Chartered Mumbai marathon. The third event of the Greatest Race on Earth (GROE), this marathon was well-organized with the Maharashtra state Governor S. M. Krishna and Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh flagging off the full and half marathons and Bollywood film stars Abhishek Bachchan and Rani Mukherjee flagging off the Senior Citizens' and Wheelchair marathons.

The GROE commenced in Nairobi in October 2005 and moved to Singapore in December. After Mumbai, the race will be taken up yet again in Hong Kong on February 12. In each of these cities, beside facing the challenge of running, marathoners need to cope with high-altitude air ( Nairobi), warm temperature (Singapore) and very high humidity (Mumbai). Essentially, bravery in the face of adversity is what The Greatest Race on Earth is all about.

Prize monies for the entire race add up to a cool $1.43 million. The Mumbai marathon itself offered prize money of $210,000. Depending on their running caliber and stamina, participants took part in the main marathon (42.195 km), half marathon (21.097 km), Dream Run (7 km), Senior Citizens' Run (5 km) or Wheelchair event ( 3.5 km).

While running the full marathon was largely the mainstay of professional athletes, many regular runners were contenders in the 21-km half-marathon. The full marathon men's category with prize money of $30,000 was won by Kenya's Daniel Rono with a timing of 2:12:03 hours. A timing of 2:33:15 hours ensured Ethiopian Mulu Seboka first place in the women's category for which she won $20,000.

Mumbai-based health entrepreneur and owner of BFY Sports & Fitness Rajeev Goenka completed the half marathon reporting he was. " dead tired at the end of it but it was fun [and had] great atmosphere!" Rajeev's interest in the marathon was to have a physical goal to work at, to support and encourage the event, and to keep fit and healthy in the bargain!

A large number of people turned out for the 7 km Dream Run, which saw celebrity-runners and unknown entities alike run for different causes - AIDS awareness, disability organizations, for the girl child, for the welfare of stray dogs, for peace etc. Some contestants in this category tried to convey social messages through their attire. A couple dressed up as Mahatma Gandhi and his wife Kasturba and aimed to spread the Mahatma's message of peace and non-violence.

Another group included 36 of Mumbai's famed Dabbawalas, men who deliver working peoples' lunch boxes. These men ran for the Aditya Jyot trust adorned in their customary attire of a topi (hat), kurta pyjama (Indian dress) and Indian chappals (slippers). They hoped to raise funds for the Aditya Jyot Eye Institute - a charity that had helped their members by conducting numerous eye check-up camps for them.

The team spirit it seems was infectious and good will permeated the air. Technical writer Vandana Haridas said, "We ran as one, we ran for fun and we enjoyed it all. I saw some interesting T-shirts with even more interesting slogans. 'We are running for a cause, burning fat,' 'Stop violence against women,' 'Positive A++itude.' What had seemed like an impossible task turned out to be a fun thing to do. Never once did I feel that I didn't have a partner. Everyone on the road was a partner; we were all there for a reason, for a cause. We were all there for fun."