NEW DELHI: In a move aimed at avoiding the winter smog and pollution in the national capital to the extent practically possible, Procam International, organisers of the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon (ADHM), on Thursday announced that the 11th edition of the IAAF Gold Label Race was being advanced by a month – to October 21.
The Delhi Half Marathon, which has traditionally been slotted on the third Sunday of November, will this year (and presumably for future editions as well) have its run on the third Sunday of October.
Telecom giant Airtel, title partner of the Delhi Half Marathon, expressed the hope that holding the event in October would “help address some of the concerns relating to air pollution”.
Ravindra Singh Negi, CEO – Delhi & NCR, Bharti Airtel said: “We are pleased that the Promoters have taken into account the feedback from Airtel, our customers and citizens at large and brought forward the race day to October 21. We appreciate the genuine effort that has been put in by Procam and other stakeholders, including the local administration, as shifting an event of this scale and stature, with participation from top international athletes, is a highly complex task. We hope this will help address some of the concerns relating to air pollution and the well-being of the participants and believe that all stakeholders need to continue collaborating and build on this positive initiative. We are also happy to note that Procam will be taking additional measures to ensure the well-being and safety of all participants.
“As always, we are delighted to support this wonderful and world-class platform and look forward to an enthusiastic participation from everyone.”
Alongside announcing the date for this year’s run, Procam declared open registrations for ADHM, which is expected to witness over 35,000 participants across five categories, i.e., Half Marathon (21.097km), Great Delhi Run (6km), Open 10K, Senior Citizens Run (4.3km) and Champions with Disability (2.4Km).
Registration for the Half Marathon and Open 10K commenced on Friday and will stay open till September 7. Registrations for the Great Delhi Run, Senior Citizens’ Run and the Champions with Disability Run also opened on Friday and will close on September 28.
Announcing the details of the upcoming race, Procam International joint managing director Vivek Singh, said: “This year is a special milestone for us, as Procam completes 30 years and to see our vision taking shape in this fashion is very satisfying.”
“The unwavering faith and support of all stake-holders, led by our title sponsor Airtel, with us for 11 years now, has contributed to our growth. We would also like to extend our deepest gratitude to all other partners, including new partners Oakley and Tata Nexon for their belief and passion and welcome them on-board,” added Singh.
“When we introduced this distance in Delhi, we always believed that it had the potential to be one of the world’s most prestigious races and more importantly get Delhi running,” he noted.
