Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon 2010

The countdown to the SCMM is under way with just 24 days to go. The biggest and most loved sporting event in Mumbai’s sporting calendar is just round the corner with an expected participation of more than 30000 people from all over the world.

I am sure all the amateur participants for the half and full marathon have been training very hard these past four months or so. The idea of participating in this grand event is two fold – to find out one’s own endurance level and to see how much one can help the under-privileged by raising money for their welfare.

There will be a lot of celebrity participants adding glamour to the event along with pageants and fun-loving peopke in the Dream Run category adding color and joy to the event.

This year the half marathon and the full marathon will start at the same time – 6.45 am on January 17, 2010. The full marathon will commence from CST and terminate at CST and will go over the newly constructed sea link from Worli to Bandra and back. The half marathon will start from Bandra and terminate at CST and go over the sea link. As far as I am concerned what really excites me is the chance to finish my half marathon amongst the front runners of the full marathon. It has actually set my blood racing with the thought of completing the run with some of the top athletes of the world. I have been training pretty hard and have targeted a time of 2 hours 15 to 20 minutes for completing my run. If that happens then I should definitely be part of the lead pack of the full marathon.

Apart from the sporting angle to the marathon, the “giving” angle is far more important as this tests the heart of the participants when it comes to helping the less fortunate living amongst us. I am confident that my colleagues have been doing their bit in raising money for the charity of their choice. It is important to learn the art of giving very early in life, as the more you give the more you get – whether in the form of more income or more blessings. Ultimately all good acts end up benefiting the giver in more ways than one. I pray that all amongst us are generous enough to do their bit for making the Charity Event as big a success as the actual sporting event.