The Ultra and Trail Running Selection Committee of Indian Athletics (formerly Athletics Federation of India) met on May 1 to decide on the team of ultra runners to represent India at the IAU 24 Hour World Championship scheduled to be held in Albi, France over October 18 and 19, 2025.

Twelve runners (six women and six men) will be representing the country. Two additional runners have also been chosen as stand-by for both the men’s team as well as the women’s.

The women’s team comprises Aparna Choudhary, Shashi Mehta, Sunita Subba, Bindu Juneja, Arti Agrawal and Sadiya Salim Savy. Sufiya Sufi will be the back-up runner.

The men’s team includes Amar Singh Devanda, Ullas Narayana, Saurav Kumar Ranjan, Geeno Antony, Velu Perumal and Sugourav Goswami. Badal Teotia will be the back-up runner.

(The author, Latha Venkatraman, is an independent journalist based in Mumbai)

Thoudam Opendro Singh is overall winner

Ashwini sets a new national best

Ashwini Ganapathi fell short of an overall win at the Bengaluru BigFoot Backyard Ultra but set a new national best for women.

She ran for 28 hours (covering 6.7 kilometres in each hour) notching up a total mileage of 187.6 km, a new national best by a woman in this format of ultra running. The previous record of 27 hours (180.9 km) was held by Aparna Choudhary, which she set in October 2024.

The overall winner of the Bengaluru BigFoot Backyard Ultra 2025 was Thoudam Opendro Singh. He ran for 29 hours. The event was held on May 10, 2025.

The backyard ultra, also known as the last runner standing, is a format of ultra running in which runners are required to run a loop of 6.7 km within an hour. Every new hour runners who have completed the 6.7 km in the previous hour continue their running until the last surviving runner is declared the winner. This winner is also the sole finisher of the race.

“ The Backyard Ultra is an interesting format of ultra running and I had wanted to attempt it for some time now,” Ashwini said.

The concept of backyard ultra was founded by Gary Cantrell of Tennessee (also known as Lazarus Lake). He is the founder and race director of Barkleys Marathon.

“ I paced my run in such a manner so as to get seven to eight minutes time in each hour to get rest and nutrition before the next hour started,” Ashwini said. She managed to finish well within the 60-minute cut-off for most of her 28 hours barring one when she had a close call. She had to help a runner get back to the finish line.

The rules of this format of ultra running mandate that runners not take any external help or aid from passers-by or friends while on the route. But at the end of each loop, they can be assisted by their support crew. Ashwini’s support crew consisted of her husband Sandeep and Anand Adkoli, race director of Malnad Ultra.

“ When we started at 6 am on May 10, 2025, we were 20 runners. As the hours went by, runners kept dropping out. At the 18th hour only four runners remained and by the 22nd hour only two of us were left – Opendro Singh and me. I continued till the 28th hour. I gave up as I had developed blisters on my feet. Opendro Singh continued for the 29th hour to win the race,” she said.

The national best for men in this format – 52 hours – is held by Sunil Sharma. He set this record in October 2024.

Ashwini also holds the national record for 12 hours with a mileage of 111.8 km.

(The author, Latha Venkatraman, is an independent journalist based in Mumbai)

Amar Singh Devanda sets a new national record in 12 hour run at Bengaluru Stadium Run 2025

Aparna Choudhary, Geeno Antony take top honours in 24-hour run

Ultra runner Amar Singh Devanda bettered his own national record in the 12-hour run at the 24-hour Stadium Run Bengaluru held on March 30 and 31, 2025.

Amar ran a distance of 151.6 kilometres during the stipulated 12 hours, smashing his own record of 145.2 km set previously. He also holds the current national record for 24-hours with a distance of 272.54 km covered.

In the 24-hour run category, Aparna Choudhary and Geeno Antony won in the women’s and men’s categories respectively. They qualified for the IAU 24-Hour World Championship to be held in Albi, France later this year.

In the women’s race in the 12-hour category, Bengaluru-based Bindu Juneja finished with top honours covering a distance of 108.8 km.

Amar Devanda’s training for the 12-hour run was a coordinated effort of the NEB Performance Team, which included a nutritionist, a running coach and a strength and conditioning coach. “ The training was devised with a scientific approach,” he said. As Amar has already qualified for the World Championship, the focus was to step up his pace in the 12-hour run so as to attempt the same pace during a 24-hour run.

“ My run went as per the plan laid out by the coaches,” he said. Post event, his recovery has also been quite good. “ I should shortly commence my training for the World Championship,” he said.

Aparna Choudhary, winner of the women’s 24-hour run, said she was confident going into the race as her training went well. Aparna normally does her training runs in the afternoon, therefore the weather adversities did not trouble her during the race.

On race day, weather was pleasant in the early hours at Bengaluru but got progressively tough with harsh sun and gradual rise in temperature.

“ I did suffer some gut issues, which really got bad. Lalita (race director of India Backyard Ultra), the person crewing for me, saved the day. I also ended up with hip flexor issues, a common problem that I have faced in many of my ultra runs,” Aparna said. In the 24-hour run, she covered a distance of 192 km.

In February 2025, Aparna had finished overall first in the 338 km run at Vineyard Ultra 2025 held in Nashik. She also won the women’s race of the Border 100-mile run held in December 2024. She has been running events for the past few months including marathons and ultra runs.

Arti Agrawal, who finished second in the women’s 24-hour race, had entered the event with very little training.  “ I have a full-time job and a family to take care of,” she said. But she did a few ultra runs including the 100-mile race of Border Ultra 2024, Adani Ahmedabad Marathon 2024, Tata Mumbai Marathon 2025, Jaipur Marathon 2025 and Tata Ultra 2025. “ I took these races as my training runs for the 24-hour run,” she said. During the stipulated 24 hours, Arti covered a distance of 182.8 km.

Geeno Antony, who secured the top position in the men’s 24-hour run also went through a vigorous 10-week training program before the event. “ This time around my training plan was designed by Santhosh Padmanabhan (also the manager of the Indian ultra runners’ team). Training included very long runs leading to a weekly mileage of 200-220 km sometimes,” he said.

As part of his training, Geeno did a 10-hour run, four night runs and four six-hour runs.

“ On race day, I started conservatively so as to stay consistent through the 24 hours. But I did lose the last 50 minutes due to an injury. It was a setback to lose that time but my coach asked to me to stop, a prudent decision in hindsight,” Geeno said. He covered a distance of 238.8 km, a new personal record of 300 meters.

Velu Perumal, who finished second in the 24-hour race, was targeting a distance of 245-250 km but finished with 233.2 km. Having done much of his training in the cool climate of Ooty, Velu did find the daytime heat at the Bengaluru stadium difficult. Velu, an army man, is now posted at the Military Hospital at Coonoor in Ooty. His training went off well with inputs from Santhosh Padmanabhan and support from Brigadier Muthana, Military Hospital Commandant.

Sugourav Goswami, who finished third behind Velu, had also stepped up his training ahead of going into the race. “ I had the longest training session with higher intensity, increased distance and time. I was running a distance of 150-170 km every week,” he said. Sugourav, who finishing third, covered a distance of 226 km, thereby qualifying for the World Championship. To qualify for the IAU 24-Hour World Championship, male runners have to cover a distance of 225 km and women runners 180 km during a 24 hour run, as per Indian Athletics guidelines.

“ My race went as per plan, near perfect. As I train around a lake in Bengaluru, I was used to running in a loop,” Sugourav said. But the long hours did prove challenging. The Bengaluru-based ultra-runner has participated in many ultra-running events. This run was his first ever stadium run. “ The longest time I had been on my feet in a running event was 18 hours. At the stadium run, I did find the last few hours tough. I struggled in the last three hours,” he said. He had devised his own training plan.

In the 12-hour women’s race Bindu Juneja was the winner covering a distance of 108.8 km. “ This was a personal best for me but I am tad disappointed that I could not break the national record of 111.8 km (currently held by Ashwini Ganapathi),” she said.

Her training was executed very well with guidance from Santhosh but on race day she did face some gut issues. Nevertheless, in the last one hour of the race, Bindu managed to cover 10.5 km to take her total mileage to 108.8 km.

The 100 km race was won by Jayadrath who finished in 7:59:33.

The NEB organized stadium run in Bengaluru was held to enable ultra-runners qualify for the upcoming IAU 24 Hour World Championship.

(The author, Latha Venkatraman, is an independent journalist based in Mumbai)

Ethiopian runners Tadese Takele and Sutume Asefa Kebede won the men’s and women’s race at the 2025 edition of Tokyo Marathon, one of the six World Marathon Majors, held on March 2, 2025.

Takele finished in two hours, three minutes and 23 seconds in the men’s race. In the women’s race Kebede clocked 2:16:31 to defend her title.

Weather on race day was unusually warm by Tokyo standards. It was perfect at the start of the race but got warmer in the second half of the race. The brunt of the shift in conditions was experienced by the amateur runners.

We spoke to a few runners from India about how they trained for the event and their experience, running the Tokyo Marathon.

Subhojit Roy

Pune-based Subhojit Roy was always more focused on running a well-timed marathon in different cities than on the six-star World Marathon Major (WMM) journey. Nevertheless, having done a few of them he decided to play along and complete all the six.

The six-star WMM circuit entails running the six marathons – Berlin, Boston, Chicago, London, New York City and Tokyo. Subhojit’s first WMM was Berlin Marathon, way back in 2017. This year, at Tokyo, he completed his six-star WMM journey. “ I got entry to the Tokyo Marathon after several attempts over the years,” he told this blog.

Towards the end of August 2024, Subhojit contracted chikungunya and had to drop out of the half marathon race at Hyderabad Marathon 2024. Though he recovered from the infection the aftereffects continued to wreak havoc for several weeks thereafter.

“ I had enrolled for Berlin Marathon 2024.  My training was absolutely negligible but I decided to go as all my bookings were non-refundable. On race day, I decided to run but carried some cash that would enable me to get back to my hotel in the event I could not complete,” he said. He finished the race in 3:12:59.

He continued to suffer body pain due to the chikungunya infection until sometime in December 2024. “ I had six weeks to train until the Tokyo Marathon,” he said. His coach Nihal Baig chalked out his training plan but a half marathon race timing and a tempo run did not turn out well. After a discussion with his coach, he altered his nutrition and was able to put in two weeks of very good training runs. “ After these training runs, I was confident,” he said.

He targeted a 3:08-finish but was able to finish in 3:05:56, a new personal record for Subhojit. “ The weather was warm and the last 5-6 kilometres were tough. I was not in a mood to let go. The weather turned warm by Tokyo standards but we train in much worse air quality and on traffic-laden roads,” he said. Subhojit was the fastest among Indian runners at the 2025 Tokyo Marathon.

“ My recovery after Tokyo Marathon has been quite good,” he said. He has enrolled for the 2025 Boston Marathon but is yet to decide on going for it.

“ My WMM journey has helped me maintain fitness, focus and sanity in the face of the many ups and downs of life. I think it has more than served the goal of self-improvement and discovery that I embarked upon when I started,” he said.

Narinder Sharma

Narinder Sharma, now a resident of Chandigarh, trains under Pune-based endurance athlete and coach, Kaustubh Radkar. He commenced his training under Kaustubh while he was at the National Defence Academy (NDA), Khadakwasla. He has been running for over 10 years.

“ My training for the Tokyo Marathon went off quite well,” he said. His performance stayed on track though the rise in temperatures did impact him. Narinder finished in 3:31:57.

At Tokyo Marathon, runners are not allowed to carry their own water bottles. They are required to seek hydration support offered in a very organized manner all along the route.

Narinder, 61, an army veteran, has completed three of the six WMM so far – Chicago, Berlin and Tokyo. He is due to participate in the 2025 Boston Marathon slated to be held on April 21. He plans to resume his training shortly. “ After Boston Marathon, I may consider New York City Marathon, which is held on the first Sunday of November each year,” he said.

Harish Vasista

The 2025 edition of Tokyo Marathon was the culmination of the six-star WMM journey for Bengaluru-based runner Harish Vasista.

He had commenced his WMM journey in 2018 when he ran Berlin Marathon that year. Training under Bengaluru-based coach K.C. Kothandapani (also known as Pani Sir to runners), Harish followed his training plan. “ Every Sunday, he gives me a plan. Usually, the training plans are woven around the race I am planning to do, my current conditions and my ability,” he said. It is often a combination of fast runs, tempo runs, interval training and long runs on the one hand and strength training and stretching on the other, he said.

“ My coach had given me a target of 3:45 but I was able to better it, and finish in 3:43:11. I had no issues during my race at Tokyo but I missed a couple of water stations and that was tough as the weather was warmer than expected,” he said. Runners are required to go to specific water stations on the basis of the last digit of one’s bib number. “ With so many runners around, you do end up missing your water stations,” Harish said.

Running the six WMMs was a lifetime experience as one meets runners from different parts of the world. “ It is awesome to see runners come with challenges and difficulties and yet complete their run with perseverance. I enjoyed all my six marathons,” he said.

Harish has signed up for the Sydney Marathon, which is the seventh run to become a part of the World Marathon Major circuit. He said he would like to do the Ladakh Marathon but it may not be possible this year as Sydney Marathon falls on August 31, 2025 and the Ladakh Marathon is typically held in the first weekend of September. What awaits him closer home is the TCS World 10k in Bengaluru, scheduled to be held on April 27, 2025.

Dilip Ghadge

The 2025 Tokyo Marathon was Dilip Ghadge’s fourth World Marathon Major. He had done Berlin Marathon, London Marathon and Chicago Marathon earlier.

A resident of Kalyan near Mumbai, Dilip, 57, has been running for over 10 years. After the initial flurry of running events, Dilip wanted to run a marathon in a European city and was aiming for the Amsterdam Marathon. But he was advised to run the Berlin Marathon, one of the initial six WMMs. He did the race in 2023 and quickly followed it up with the 2024 London Marathon and the Tokyo Marathon this year.

As Dilip has ACSM (American College of Sports Medicine) certification, he drew up his own training plan for Tokyo. “ Training went off quite well and the run was also good,” he said. Dilip finished in 3:52:26, a new personal record.

“ I had learnt about Tokyo Marathon rules, especially the one about hydration. At Tokyo, water is supplied in cups and runners have to gulp down quickly and resume their running. During my training runs, I practiced this method of drinking water – gulping from the bottle kept in my car,” he said.

His recovery has been good, helped mainly by lots of walking, He went on some sight-seeing trips in Japan after the run.

“ I will be running Boston Marathon on April 21, 2025 and I have already resumed my training,” he said. Later in August this year, he will be running the Sydney Marathon, which has now become part of the World Marathon Majors as its seventh event. Dilip’s sixth WMM – New York City Marathon – will have to be attempted in 2026.

Smita Kulkarni

Smita Kulkarni, a runner from Pune, completed five of the six marathons of WMM with her run at Tokyo Marathon this March.

Her training for the Tokyo Marathon went off well under coach Kaustubh Radkar. She was happy with her training. But the warm weather of race day threw up challenges. “ At Tokyo Marathon, runners are not allowed to carry hydration and with unexpectedly warm weather there was a rush at the hydration stations. Most runners were trying to grab water. It was a mess,” she said.

“ The first half of the race went off okay but during the second half we had no respite from the sun,” she said. Barring the problem with hydration everything else about Tokyo Marathon was good, Smita said. She finished in 3:57:51.

Smita is trying to qualify for the Boston Marathon and she needs to finish in 3:50 for her age category. Having finished Tokyo Marathon and with nothing immediate on the cards, Smita plans to get back to the gym for weight training.

“ In the past 15 months, I have done five marathons – New York City, Delhi, London, Ahmedabad and Tokyo,” she said acknowledging the fact that she needs to take a break from running and resume with renewed energy, later.

Sunanda Dayani

Sunanda Dayani, a runner from Mumbai, has been running for over ten years. Tokyo Marathon was her fourth WMM, having done the New York City Marathon in 2019, Berlin Marathon in 2023 and Chicago Marathon in 2024.

Guided by Coach Kaustabh Radkar, Sunanda went through a 16-week training plan that commenced in November 2024. “ My Tokyo run went off very well though the weather was much warmer than expected. It’s a late start and the sun was right on our heads,” she said. Sunanda found the second half of the race tough because of the sun. She finished the marathon in 3:58:32. Her personal best timing in a marathon is 2:55:23, secured at the Apollo Tyres New Delhi Marathon 2024.

“ My recovery has been quite good. I have been walking a lot in Japan,” she said. Sunanda, a nutritionist, plans to now focus on strength training and resume marathon training in July. Typically, runners in India ease off running during the summer months and focus on strength training. “ I may want to do a trek possibly,” she said.

Kranti Salvi

At Tokyo Marathon 2025, Kranti Salvi completed her six-star WMM journey.

“ Because I run regularly, I am always race ready,” she said. The Mumbai-based runner is often a podium finisher at most of the races that she participates in. She has also secured a Guinness World Record for being the fastest marathon runner in a saree at the 2018 Berlin Marathon, in Welsh dress at the 2022 London Marathon and in a Japanese kimono at the 2024 Toronto Waterfront Marathon.

She used the Tata Mumbai Marathon 2025, held in January, as a long training run for the Tokyo Marathon. Her WMM journey began in 2017 with Boston Marathon.

“ Tokyo Marathon was a very different race compared to the other WMMs. There are many rules to adhere to. It’s also a silent race. The roads are excellent and the volunteers do a very good job,” she said.

She finished Tokyo Marathon in 3:59:09.

Back in time, she had wanted to do the Tokyo Marathon in a kimono but the race rules do not permit running in costumes. Having secured the requisite permissions from the Guinness World Records she decided to do it at the 2024 Toronto Waterfront Marathon.

Pramod Salvi

When Pramod Salvi signed up for his first long-distance race at the Mumbai Marathon many years ago, he enrolled for the full marathon without knowing what it entails.

He is not new to sports or adventure sports. He has been involved in many activities including tennis, swimming, equestrian events, motor rallying and hang gliding.

Pramod has been into recreational running for over 13-14 years and has done several marathons and many other shorter distance runs. He and his wife Kranti Salvi, a podium finisher in most runs, have been participating in several races of varying distances over the years.

At Tokyo, his run went off well barring some niggling cramps that he felt sometime around the 30 km mark. He finished the run in 5:23:03.

With this marathon, he has finished five of the six-star WMMs. He is yet to do the Boston Marathon.

Pratik Shetty

Mumbai-based Pratik Shetty learnt about World Marathon Majors when he decided to read about running to get information on injury prevention.

He started running sometime in 2014 primarily as a means to stay fit and keep himself involved in some sporting activity. At the 2016 Mumbai Marathon, he signed up for a full marathon. “ I realized later that I jumped to full marathon too early in my running. Following that Mumbai Marathon run, I ended up with an ankle injury,” he said. He decided to read up and find out more details about injury prevention. That’s when he got to know about World Marathon Majors.

Pratik, 34, has been registering for each of these WMMs and got entry to his first one at the 2018 Berlin Marathon. He bagged his second one at the 2025 Tokyo Marathon. He has four more to go for the six-star WMM medal.

“ My training for Tokyo Marathon was not good as my work kept me busy. My training mileage was quite low,” he said. On race day, he started well and was able to keep to his pace until the 22nd kilometre. After a toilet break at this point Pratik was not able to get back to his pace. He finished in 5:56:53.

“ The Tokyo Marathon course appears easy but the gentle inclines along the way do take a lot of energy out of the runner,” he said. Pratik will now be focusing on the Procam Slam, which entails running four races – TCS World 10 k in Bengaluru, Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon, Tata Steel World 25 k in Kolkata and Tata Mumbai Marathon.

Having done the ACSM (American College of Sports Medicine) certification, Pratik chalks his own training plans. His next race will be the upcoming TCS World 10 km race in Bengaluru slated to be held on April 27, 2025.

(The author, Latha Venkatraman, is an independent journalist based in Mumbai)

The 20th edition of the annual Mumbai Marathon – currently Tata Mumbai Marathon (TMM) – was held on January 19, 2025. According to pre-race media reports, an estimated 65,000 people had registered to participate in various categories ranging from the marathon to the Dream Run. This year’s race was much anticipated because some of the infrastructure projects being executed in the city and which had messed up the marathon’s route for the past few years, had either been finished or were close to being finished. However, there was the shadow of an unexpected yet long predicted visitor – air pollution. It is something, Mumbai as a city (especially if it loves running, cycling, walking and such activities) will have to take note of. This, coupled with a warm and humid race day, took some of the sheen off 2025 TMM. On the other hand, the management of the race appeared to have improved although what exactly TMM aspires to be – driven by the numbers participating or oriented more towards performance – remained still a bit difficult to understand. This year too, we spoke to athletes, from both elite and open categories, for an overview of how the race and the event was for them. Excerpts:

Anish Thapa

For their training, the Indian Army’s battery of elite marathoners is typically spread over Pune, Ooty, Ranikhet and Bengaluru. Anish Thapa came to Mumbai straight from Ooty. He had just two days to adjust from the cool climes of the southern hill station to Mumbai’s warm and humid weather. Not to mention – race day in the city has always been a last-minute kiss or kick as regards the weather. You never really know what’s in store, till the day dawns. For instance, overall, on the warmer, humid side, Mumbai had thrown a surprise in 2024 gifting athletes excellent weather conditions and they responded with good performances. As it turned out, 2025 race day witnessed Mumbai back to its usual self. It wasn’t a kiss but a kick. “ My run was okay till the bridge over the sea. After that, the uphill at Peddar Road took a toll. Then past 40 kilometers or so, my hamstring got tight. The last two kilometers was really tough for me,’’ Anish Thapa said. Despite the difficulties, Anish completed his run in two hours, 17 minutes and 23 seconds to place first among Indian elite men and seventh overall. He was among those who – while speaking to this blog – recommended an earlier start for the elite race in Mumbai. In 2025, it commenced at 7.20 AM. He felt a 6 AM or 6.30 AM start would be better given the general trend of race days in the city staying warm and humid. Provided his post-TMM recovery goes off well, Anish hopes to run the marathon in New Delhi in February second half. 

Nirmaben Thakor

This elite runner, who hails from Gujarat, ably defended her title at the 2025 edition of the Tata Mumbai Marathon. However, it was not without its share of difficulties. Nirmaben placed first in the Indian elite women’s category with timing of 2:50:06. Last year, she had won the race with a personal best timing (PB) of 2:47:11. This time around, weather played spoilsport despite her training being quite good. Nirmaben trains under Vijendra Singh at Nashik. On social media accounts Vijendra Singh describes himself as an athletics coach from Sports Authority of India training at Bonsala Military School, Nashik. Nirmaben hails from a village in Patan district, Gujarat. “ During my school days I did not do much of sport. But somewhere along the way I got into running,” she told this blog. In competitions around running, Nirmaben was able to turn in very good timings. At the Bajaj Allianz Pune Half Marathon 2023, she finished the women’s race in 1:17:16 securing an overall second position. She turned in her best timing in the full marathon at the 2024 edition of Tata Mumbai Marathon. “ That is my personal best in the full marathon,” she said. The 27-year-old runner survives on her podium earnings. According to Nirmaben, the weather on January 19, 2025 – race day in Mumbai – was challenging. “ It was quite warm and the humidity was also high. My body was getting heated up. Our start time is very late,” she said. The elite runners started their race at 7.20 AM. Despite the heat, she was free of cramps. “ During the last three kilometers I had difficulties with my shoes as they had become wet and my feet were feeling squishy inside. But I decided to ignore it as I was too close to the finish line,” she said. Nirmaben may opt to go for the New Delhi Marathon, slated to be held on February 23, 2025.

Man Singh

The winner of the 2024 Asian Marathon Championships, wasn’t quite happy with how he fared at 2025 TMM. “ I am not satisfied with my performance. It could have been better,’’ Man Singh said. According to him, he had targeted a sub-two hours, 14 minutes timing. But the weather on race day proved to be a problem. It was warm and humid. “ My run was good in the beginning. But then, the heat started to take a toll. I got muscle cramps,’’ he said. The cramps in turn hindered his progress, slowing him down especially in the last five to seven kilometers. “ I became slow,’’ Man Singh said. Covering the 42 kilometer-distance in 2:17:37, Man Singh placed second among Indian elite men and eighth overall. The difference in timing between him and Anish Thapa, winner among Indian elite men, was 14 seconds. With his TMM outing not up to satisfaction and India’s elite athletes continuing to chase the late Shivnath Singh’s longstanding national record (2:12:00 – set in 1978) in the marathon, Man Singh hopes to recover well from his run in Mumbai and be ready for the marathon in New Delhi, due February second half. He would also like to do a race abroad.

Gopi Thonakal

Among the most familiar faces at TMM, Gopi’s preparations for the 2025 edition of the race had been good. The outcome – he finished in 2:19:59 to place third among Indian elite men – wasn’t to his satisfaction. “ I had prepared well but couldn’t deliver as expected,’’ he said. Gopi too found the warm, humid weather of race day challenging. Around 25 kilometers, he sensed his body developing catches. Result – he couldn’t run as freely as he wished to. Nevertheless, it being too early in the race to worry over such issues, he soldiered on. Plus, unlike in some of the previous editions of TMM, this time around, he wasn’t getting cramps or requiring to stop and stretch. According to Gopi, given the weather was impacting the foreign elite athletes too, they weren’t very far from the Indian elites even at kilometer-30. Overall, his progression was okay till the 32nd kilometer or so. “ Then I became slow,’’ he said. Depending on how well he recovers post-TMM, he would like to participate in the upcoming marathon in New Delhi scheduled for February second half (he won the 2024 edition of this event in 2:14:40) . He also plans to do a race overseas in the months ahead. At the time of writing, Gopi (he won gold at the Asian Marathon Championship in 2017) still held the second fastest time yet by an Indian in the marathon – 2:13:39, set at the Seoul International Marathon in 2019.

Sonam

Sonam finished third among Indian elite women runners at 2025 TMM. Uniquely, she is, as yet, only an occasional long-distance runner. The 2025 TMM was her first marathon. She has run the half marathon distance at a few races before. Her main disciplines in athletics are the steeplechase and the 5000 meters. The 20-year-old athlete commenced running along with youngsters training for entry into the services. “ I had started running before the pandemic induced lockdown,” she said. At the 2022 National Junior Athletic Championships held in Assam, Sonam got the gold medal in the 2000 meter-steeplechase event. She also got a podium finish at the 2022 National Cross-Country Championships held in Kohima, Nagaland. At the 2022 edition of Vasai Virar Municipal Corporation Marathon (VVMM), she finished fifth among elite women in the half marathon run. Sonam’s decision to sign up for Tata Mumbai Marathon was largely fuelled by her family’s need for money. Her sister’s wedding was coming up. “ My coach signed me up for this race as he was confident that I would finish within the first seven finishers among Indian elite women,” she said. The first seven finishers are assured of prize money. Sonam, originally from Bulandshahr in Uttar Pradesh, lives in Delhi and trains under coach Sanjeev Kumar, whose disciplines include steeplechase and hurdles. Sonam did not do much training before the TMM race, barring a couple of runs of 30 and 32 kilometers. “ It was quite a challenging race for me. First, the late start was not comfortable. For the first five to six kilometers I got no water,” she said. She was also quite clueless about the hydration requirements for a marathon as this was her first race over the distance. “ I had no idea about the route or how much I had finished. I was beginning to get cramps and suffered cracked nails. But when I crossed the finish line, I felt overwhelmed,” Sonam said. Mumbai’s humid weather is something she has to get accustomed to. “ During the race, I was running alone and I felt scared. I have a phobia of water and running on those bridges was quite a daunting experience for me,” she said, adding that she did consider giving up the race somewhere along the route. Looking back, she is glad she did not give up. She finished in 2:55:45. “ Having completed the marathon, I can say it was a great experience. A lot of the niggling issues that we athletes tend to get bothered by seem so negligible once you finish a marathon,” she said. She will now be participating in the National Games in February, focusing on her disciplines – the 5000 meter run and the 3000 meter-steeplechase.

Kalidas Hirave

One of India’s best civilian marathoners, it was only in early December 2024 that Kalidas Hirave won the year’s edition of the Vasai Virar Municipal Corporation Marathon (VVMM). He won it with timing of 2:18:21, missing the course record narrowly. A little over a month later, came the 2025 TMM. “ My preparation was good but the heat and humidity of race day got to me,’’ Kalidas said. He wanted to attempt a good timing, something in the range of two hours and 15 minutes. On January 19 in Mumbai, Kalidas’s run proceeded more or less according to plan till about the 25th kilometer. Then he began to feel the impact of exerting himself in Mumbai’s weather. By kilometers 33 and 34, he was sensing some sort of failure in the body. “ Over, the last 3-4 kilometers, I was very slow,’’ he said. He finished in 2:20:28, to place fourth in the Indian men’s elite category. Looking back, Kalidas is unsure if two marathons in two months – both at high levels of performance – may have impacted his performance at 2025 TMM. Big races call for comprehensive recovery periods in between. Consequently, even as he would like to go for the February second half-marathon in Delhi (like the other elites) he pegs it to proper recovery from his outing at TMM. Still, at the time of writing, he had already recommenced training and was hoping to make it to Delhi for the annual marathon there. For this runner based out of Nashik, the biggest challenge faced in training is the typical curse of the elite civilian athlete. Alone in that space, one trains alone. One does not have a marathon pack for company (a pack of that level of running), like runners in the military do. This is one of the major problems in Indian marathon running – the lack of inclusiveness between civilian and military in training so that talent is drawn from a common pool. The blunt truth is that civilians, despite all the work-life challenges they face (in the military you can focus on sports), have made good progress in the past few years and there are civilian athletes now delivering sub-2:30 performances; some of them, consistently. “ I wish I could also train in Ooty or Bengaluru along with the other elites or be supported by big companies into sports,’’ Kalidas said.   

Srinu Bugatha

Last year at TMM, Srinu Bugatha had placed first in the Indian men’s elite category with time to finish of 2:17:29. He improved that to 2:14:38 at the 2024 Apollo Tyres New Delhi Marathon held in February. Then in April, he suffered an injury to his right hamstring. In Europe, where he went to participate in the year’s Prague Marathon, the injury worsened. He had to spend time recovering from the injury and nursing himself back to form.  In August 2024, he finished first among Indian men at the NDMC Hyderabad Marathon with timing of 2:29:25. Two months later, he was laid low by dengue fever. Recovering from it, he was able to train for roughly two months and get ready for 2025 TMM. “ My run at TMM this year, didn’t go as I had planned,’’ Srinu said. After kilometer-23, his pace began to slacken a bit and at that stage his fellow runners from the Indian men’s elite squad, keeping up with their pacer, left him behind. For the remainder of the race, he soldiered on alone, not exactly an ideal position to be in. Srinu finished in 2:20:43 to place fifth in the Indian elite men’s category. He now plans to run at the 2025 edition of the New Delhi marathon slated for February 23.   

Jyoti Gawate

An elite runner, Jyoti Gawate from Parbhani in Maharashtra, is a regular participant at many of the races around the country. Jyoti has won the Mumbai marathon’s race for Indian elite women twice, secured second position four times and third position once. She won the race for Indian elite women in the 2011 and 2017 editions. She came in second in 2010, 2018, 2019 and 2020 editions. In 2014, she finished third among elite women runners. In 2015, she finished fourth and in 2012 and 2013 she finished in fifth position. In 2016, she finished in sixth position. “ I am returning to the Mumbai marathon after four years. My training was quite good but the race was very tough because of the weather,” she said. Jyoti finished the race in 3:11:09 to place seventh among Indian elite women runners. “ I did not get any energy drinks during the run,” she said. Jyoti had represented India in the IAU 100 km World Championship held in Bengaluru on December 7, 2024. But she had to quit the race at 60 kilometers due to injury. Jyoti has represented the country for 100K and 50K races in both Asian and world championships. Jyoti holds the women’s national record for 100 kilometers, 8:20:07 set at the IAU 100 km World Championship in Bernau-Berlin in 2022. Immediately on the cards for Jyoti is probably the 50 kilometer-race at Tata Ultra, due on February 23, 2025. “ I have nothing planned but I would like to attempt the 100 kilometer-race again to see if I can improve my national record timings,” she said.

Shyamali Singh

At the 2025 edition of TMM, Shyamali Singh had to give up the race at around eight kilometers as she had a severe backache. “ While travelling to Mumbai a few days before the race itself, I noticed that my back was hurting quite badly. I kept taking medicines but to no avail,” she said. There’s more to Shyamali’s story than the above-mentioned setback of January 19, 2025. No stranger to TMM, twenty-five-year-old Shyamali has been running for several years and has finished with podium or near podium positions, including in the Indian women’s elite category in Mumbai. In the 2017 edition of the Mumbai marathon, Shyamali finished second among Indian elite women (3:08:41). She finished second among Indian elite women at the Tata Steel 25K event in Kolkata, in 2019 (1:39:02). At the 2020 edition of TMM, she placed third among Indian elite women with timing of 2:58:42. That same year in September, she started to have mild headache and fever. Following routine visits to local doctors and taking medicines, her fever came down but the headache worsened. A resident of Asansol in West Bengal, Shyamali, had to go through a series of hospitalizations and wrong diagnoses before she and her husband, Santosh Singh, learnt of Dr Siddhartha Ghosh, neurosurgeon at Apollo Hospital in Chennai. “ By this time, we had already incurred a huge amount of expenses,” Santosh said. For their consultation with Dr Ghosh, they had to take a flight from Durgapur to Chennai. After the diagnosis – the doctors discovered a tumor – and the initial treatment, they went back home to Asansol and returned to Chennai in December 2020 for surgery. Shyamali underwent a 12-hour brain surgery in December, 2020. “ For us, Dr Ghosh is akin to God. He was aware that Shyamali was an elite long-distance runner and therefore allowed her to resume running slowly after six months,” Santosh said. At the 2024 edition of TMM, she finished in third place in the Indian elite women’s category with timing of 3:04:35. This year’s TMM didn’t prove as successful. But such is life. Going ahead, Shyamali is likely to participate in Kochi Marathon, slated to be held on February 9, 2025.

Reenu Sandhu

Running the elite marathon at 2025 TMM, Reenu Sandhu pulled out of the race at around 27 kilometers. “ During the 2025 National Cross-Country Championship last week I ended up with fever and I had not fully recovered. Because of the overall fatigue and the weather conditions on race day I had to give up the TMM race,” she said. The late start was also not helpful. The race for elite runners commences at 7:20 AM, which is considered late for Mumbai’s humid weather. Reenu, a head constable with the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and posted in Bhopal, is a track and field athlete who focuses on 5000 meters and 10,000 meters. The 27-year-old athlete, hailing from Haryana, also runs the half marathon and the full marathon. In 2023, Reenu won the Indira Marathon, held in Prayagraj. The following year she earned a silver medal. She had secured a gold medal in the 2023 Indian Army Veteran Half Marathon held in Delhi. Her personal best in the marathon is 2:47:11, which she secured at the Coal India Ranchi Marathon 2024. She will now be heading for the 2025 Coal India Ranchi Marathon scheduled to be held on February 9, 2025. Next on the cards will be the 2025 World Police Athletics to be held in the US. She will be running the 5000 meters and 10,000 meter-races at this event.

Sarswati Rai

Winner of the women’s race in the open category of 2025 TMM, 46-year-old Sarswati Rai commenced running about 10 years ago. “ My husband, who was in the army at that time, encouraged me to take up running. Initially, I used to wake up early, go for a run at 4 AM and return home before daylight appeared. I was very shy of getting out and running. There was no running culture where I lived,” she said. Her husband now works with Defence Security Corps (DSC). A resident of Kalimpong, Sarswati was initially clueless about distances. “ I did not know what a distance of one kilometer was. In 2015, I enrolled for half marathon at the Rotary Darjeeling Marathon. It was a tough run for me. I kept stopping as I was feeling dizzy. I finished in two hours, 50 minutes. The guy who was driving the ambulance kept asking if I wanted to stop running,” she said. Sarswati then began focusing on shorter distances to improve her timing and worked her way up through the distances. Her training for 2025 TMM was quite good but her performance on race day did not match up to the training, she said. “ The weather was tough. It was very warm and humid. Normally, I can do 10 kilometers without water but here I had to have water at seven kilometers itself,” she said. She finished the marathon in 3:10:45 winning overall among women in the open category as well as in her age category of 45-49 years. With this race, she completed the Procam Slam for the second time. Procam Slam entails running the four races organized by Procam. These include Tata Mumbai Marathon, TCS World 10K Bengaluru, Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon and the Tata Steel World 25K Kolkata; each of these races have to be completed within a stipulated finish time. In February 2024, Sarswati won the women’s open category marathon at New Delhi Marathon also known as National Marathon, with a timing of 3:02:46, her best so far. “ It would be ideal to come a few days ahead of the race to Mumbai but as we have to spend our own money for travel and stay it is not feasible,” she said. Her next race was a half marathon at Golden Pagoda Marathon 2025 at Namsai in Arunachal Pradesh on February 9, 2025.

Amar Singh Devanda

Amar Singh Devanda did not train specifically for the Mumbai Marathon. A seasoned ultrarunner who has been in the Indian ultrarunning team multiple times, he had recently represented India in the IAU 100 km World Championship held in Bengaluru in December 2024. Amar was the fastest runner among Indian ultrarunners at that championship. At Tata Mumbai Marathon 2025, Amar finished overall third in the open category and first in his age category of 25 to 29 years. He finished his marathon in 2:35:13, a new personal record for him. Amar could see many runners struggle on account of the weather but he was able to sustain his pace primarily because of his exposure to ultrarunning. He believes that his mind used to ultrarunning helped him cope with the adverse weather. Amar holds the national record for 24-hour run (272.54 km). “ I was able to maintain my hydration and nutrition well throughout the run,” he said. At TMM, the problem for early finishers is the wall of runners especially from the 10 km segment. “ After 31 km it is a struggle running through the crowd of runners. Volunteers need to be guided to direct 10K runners to keep to one side of the road so that there is space for marathon runners to run,” he said. Amar will now be doing 50 km at the Tata Ultra Marathon, slated to be held on February 23, 2025. Thereafter, his focus will be on 24-hour running.

Anil Korvi

Last year Anil Korvi ran the half marathon at TMM as he was nursing an injury. He won in his age category (30 to 34 years old). This time around he did the marathon and finished overall 13th in the open category and third in his age category with timing of 2:42:34. His performance could have been better if not for a niggling back pain, the fatigue of three events run within the duration of a month and tough weather on race day. A month ago, he did TSK 25 km in Kolkata. He finished seventh overall and third in his age category. Following this run, he ended up with back pain and fever. He had barely recovered when he had to travel to Gorakhpur for a 10 kilometer-cross country run there. Anil is an employee of Indian Railways. “ I was not able to do any long runs because of lack of time. I was not able to do speed runs either. Every time I tried to step up my speed my back pain would return,” he said. On the TMM course, Anil tried running with Manoj Rane (also a podium finisher) and Amar Singh Devanda but after a few kilometers he decided to fall back; he could not keep pace with the fast runners. “ The weather was not much of an issue for me. My training was inadequate. Also, after the 38th kilometer-mark I did not get hydration support as the water stations were on the other side of the road,” he said.

Mrinal Biswas

During the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown period, Mrinal Biswas, 67, was unable to go swimming as most pools were closed. He decided to take up running. Initially, he ran on the terrace of his building in Mira Road. Later he came on to the road and started running on the streets of his colony. “ My cousin Abhijit Shome is a runner. I took his advice and tips on running from him. I took it slow,” he said. In October 2024, Mrinal competed in the Goa Ironman. The 2025 edition of Tata Mumbai Marathon was his third year at this iconic running event. The annual Mumbai marathon commenced in 2004 and completed 20 years this year, having lost two years in 2021 and 2022 to the pandemic. In the previous two editions, Mrinal ran the half marathon race. At this year’s edition of TMM, he was running his second full marathon race. “ In my first full marathon I finished in 3:55. Many runners were surprised with my timing,” he said. Mrinal wanted to train properly and so, joined Snails2Bolt group under Coach Manish Jaiswal. He followed Jaiswal’s training plans. “ My training for this event went off very well,” he said, adding, “ race-day was quite good for me. I did not find the weather too tough. It was a well-organized run with very good work by the volunteers.” Mrinal finished the marathon in 3:33:21, finishing first in his age category of 65 to 69 years.

Team Meghalaya

Kmoin Wahlang is not your everyday senior citizen. A small woman, easily lost among the physically bigger people and still bigger crowds clustered near Mumbai’s Gateway of India, which was where this blog met her, Kmoin had just claimed her sixth victory in her age group hours earlier at 2025 TMM. The 76-year-old, sole participant in TMM’s ` 75 years & above female’ category completed the 42 kilometer-marathon in 4:37:30. The mother of 16 children (12 of who are alive today), grandmother to 54 and great grandmother to seven, was relaxed and betraying no sign of exhaustion from that morning’s race. This blog asked her if Mumbai’s weather – race day was warm and humid affecting the performance of many athletes – had been an issue. She dismissed it; she faced no problems worth mentioning. In 2024, she had completed the marathon at TMM in 4:29:24. What strikes the observer is the timing – in 2025 for instance, the timing returned by the 76-year-old would fetch her a third place in TMM’s 60 to 64-year-old age category; a group that is more than 10 years younger in age. Hailing from Shngimawlein in Meghalaya, Kmoin said she started her journey in running at age 69 or 70. She reaches Mumbai every year for TMM with the team of runners regularly coming for the event from the state in north east India. Besides Kmoin, Meghalaya had a podium finisher in Tlanding Wahlang, who completed the marathon in 2:45:18 to place first in the 45 to 49 years age category for men.   

Thomas Bobby Philip

For Bengaluru-based Thomas Bobby Philip, 2025 TMM was an enjoyable experience. Bobby plans his annual training calendar around two events – the TCS World 10K in Bengaluru and the Tata Mumbai Marathon. TMM is an event he looks forward to every year. He found the 2025 edition of the event well executed. Equally, the execution of his own plan and strategy at the event, went off well. He had targeted a finish time of below three hours and 15 minutes and was delighted to complete the race in 3:11:48. Strategy and disciplined delivery appear to have been the key. “ Had I altered the pace and gone a second or two faster, I would have probably messed it up. Over time, you learn to leash in that urge to accelerate and run in a more controlled fashion,’’ Bobby, who has by now years of experience running marathons, said. The only difficulty he felt may have been at the uphill section on Peddar Road but even that went by without much exertion and only some ache in the calves to cope with for the rest of the run. Asked about the weather conditions on race day, Bobby said that it didn’t affect him because Mumbai has a general nature of weather that is characteristic to the city and also, he “ had planned for the worst.’’ “ Even in that phase when I was getting sub-three hour-timings, I didn’t let the weather bother me too much,’’ he said. Further, this was Bobby’s thirteenth TMM; he knew what to expect and when he runs, he doesn’t allow external factors to affect him. He keeps his mind in check. Bobby said that the completion of the infrastructure projects underway earlier, definitely made the course in Mumbai more enjoyable. A barefoot runner, he also said that the resurfacing of some of the roads made his 2025 outing in Mumbai among the best he had in all these years of running in the city. Bobby placed third in his age category (55-59 years) in the marathon at 2025 TMM.  

Vaijayanti Ingawale

A paediatrician based in Thane, Vaijayanti Ingawale was not able to execute a good training plan ahead of the 2025 TMM. “ I had some back issues and was not able to do speed practice,” she said. Vaijayanti, who is also an ultrarunner, had enrolled for the Border 100 kilometer-run, held over December 14-15, 2024. She had to quit after 30 kilometers as she started cramping. She has been securing age category podium positions in marathons and shorter distances for the past several years. At TMM, she decided to take it slow and steady. “ The weather did not get to me but I could see a lot of runners suffering,” she said. Vaijayanti had a fall at around 21 kilometers but she was able to resume walking and then, running. “ My target was to finish somewhere between 5:13 and 5:30 hours,” she said. Vaijayanti, 67, finished the marathon in 5:24:51 securing first place in her age category of 65 to 69 years. She has enrolled for the 50 kilometer-race at Tata Ultra, due on February 23, 2025 in Lonavala.

Pervin Batliwala

Pervin Batliwala has been an age category podium finisher in most of the running events that she participates. At TMM 2025, she finished the half marathon in 2:14:20, winning yet another age category podium (70 years and above). In December 2024, at Vasai Virar Municipal Marathon (VVMM), she had covered the distance with an even better timing of 2:11:48 to finish second in her age category of 60 year and above. “ When I started the run at TMM, I found my friends running too fast. I decided to do my own race,” she said. Her training for Mumbai Marathon was good, though her focus has been more on swimming in recent months. “ In 2024, much of my training time was focused on swimming. I wanted to focus on freestyle swimming technique as I am new to it. I am good in the breast stroke,” she said. Pervin also takes part in open water swimming races. She has completed the six-star World Marathon Majors, done a few ultrarunning events including Comrades Marathon (an ultramarathon in South Africa) and the Khardung La Challenge, a 72 km run in Ladakh among others. This time around at TMM, weather was a dampener. “ It was quite warm. I found it difficult to accelerate. I saw many runners suffering cramps. In such situations we have to be sensible and careful and pull back from our targets,” she said. Her next event is in swimming. Later, she may consider signing up for the Sydney Marathon, which is now part of the World Marathon Majors.

Asokan Shanmugam

A runner based in Chennai, Asokan Shanmugam, got into recreational running when he was 41 years old. Over the past 11 years (now he is 52) he has been able to get age category podium finishes at many of the running events that he participates in. “ I run six days a week and for two to three days I do strength training,” he said. At the 2024 edition of Vasai Virar Municipal Marathon (VVMM) Asokan won in his age category (50-59 years) with a personal best timing of 1:23:53 in the half marathon race. “ At the time of the Vasai Virar race the weather was quite good but by the time of the Mumbai marathon, the heat had increased,” he said. He was not unduly affected by Mumbai’s weather during the TMM run as he is used to running in similar weather in Chennai. At 2025 TMM, he finished the half marathon in 1:24:59, getting a third position in the age category of 50 to 54 years. “ I would like to bring down my half marathon timing by another 2-3 minutes before I attempt a full marathon,” he said.

(The authors, Latha Venkatraman and Shyam G Menon, are independent journalists based in Mumbai. This article is a work in progress and will keep growing as more conversations happen)

Annual marathon done and dusted, the roads near Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT), betrayed little sign of the thousands of runners who had passed that way just over 24 hours ago. The city is like a chameleon. It changes colour briefly for India’s biggest marathon. Event over, it quickly returns to its regular call sign of bustling trade and commerce. It was January 20, 2025. Not far from CSMT, at the apartment where the runners from Ladakh stayed, the room I was ushered into reserved a corner for its residents to pray. As Jigmet Dolma told me, the team’s coach, Mumbai-based Savio D’Souza was gifted a traditional print on cloth, done in the style of the Buddhist faith. Kept on a shelf in the room and supported by the wall, the fabric imprinted with an image of divinity, became the centre piece. There were two prayer books and small steel cups bearing offerings of water, in front of the image. The adjacent window was shut. But through its glass panes, sunlight wafted in less like an electric beam and more like a warm, diffused glow. As I understood, the little shrine appeared when the runners reached Mumbai for their annual tryst with the city’s marathon. Race done and runners gone, the shrine too disappeared. Sitting in that peaceful corner, I felt transported to Ladakh. 

Stanzin Dolkar, Skarma Idong Lanzes and Tashi Ladol – all of them still doing their college education – walked into the room. For the trio, it had been a busy season of running till January 19, 2025. Back home in Ladakh, their training for India’s season of marathons, typically begins in April. The month of March is a period of rest. Stanzin Dolkar hails from Lamayuru. She has been to Mumbai before, as part of Ladakh’s running team. For most Ladakhi runners, their marathon season leading up to the Tata Mumbai Marathon (TMM), commences with local races. In Stanzin’s case, it was the annual Ladakh Marathon; its 2024 edition, wherein she participated in the half marathon and finished third. Next came the marathon in Spiti, where she placed second in the half marathon. At the inaugural edition of the Kashmir International Marathon, she placed eleventh overall among women in the half marathon. Then, traveling south to Pune in Maharashtra, she finished ninth among women in the half marathon there. This outing earned her a new personal best (PB) – an hour and 24 minutes to cover 21 kilometres. Her first race of the season in the Mumbai region was the annual Vasai Virar Mayor’s Marathon (VVMM). At the event, she placed second in the women’s half marathon. It was time now to focus on TMM.

Unlike Stanzin Dolkar, who appeared comfortably settled into running the half marathon, Skarma viewed herself for the present, as a 10 kilometre-specialist. Her season had started with a first place over a distance of 11.2 kilometres at the Ladakh Marathon in Leh. Trying her hand at the half marathon for the first time, she got a tenth place in the women’s half marathon at the 2024 Kashmir International Marathon. “ It was tough for me. I thought I won’t do the half marathon again,’’ she said. Skarma, who hails from Kobet in Nubra, had therefore planned to do the 10K at TMM in Mumbai. It would be her first visit to the city as part of Ladakh’s running team. Then an error occurred while registering for the race. Her original registration accidentally preferred TMM’s virtual race and by the time she tried to correct it, registrations for the actual 10K had closed. So, she ended up registering for another half marathon. Would it be tough? How would she fare in it?

Tashi, who completes this trio, has run in Mumbai before. Her PB in the half marathon is 1:23:10. At 2023 TMM, she had finished second in her age category with timing of 1:25:22. Her 2024-2025 season commenced, as with Stanzin and Skarma, at the annual Ladakh Marathon, where she earned a first place in the half marathon. Tashi followed that up with a first place in the half, in Spiti. She placed eighth among women in the half, at the Kashmir International Marathon. It was another eighth among women in the half, at Pune. Then she was first among women in the half marathon at VVMM. Thereafter, it was countdown to 2025 TMM.

On January 19, race day in Mumbai, all three Ladakhi runners found the humidity difficult to endure. The early portion of the race – the stretch leading up to the Sea Link bridge and the time spent on it – was particularly uncomfortable because of the humidity. They had spent adequate time in Mumbai in the lead-up to race day and yet, as runners from Ladakh they had a problem coping with the city’s humidity. The heat wasn’t as much an issue. Unlike in the 42 kilometre-marathon, wherein runners form packs to get carried through and strike out on their own in the final portion, in the half marathon, it is each to his / her own design from the start. “ In the 42, which is genuinely long, it makes sense to have a group that carries you along for much of the distance and then strike out by oneself,’’ Jigmet, who is a seasoned marathoner, explained. The half marathon is viewed as a more individual race given its shorter distance. Although they all hailed from Ladakh, the three half marathon runners moved in their own individual cocoons. Skarma, who loves the 10K, shot to the front early. Tashi, who was at this stage behind Skarma and having Stanzin Dolkar for company, put it in perspective. “ The heat and humidity of the Sea Link portion was tough on me. By the time I finished it, I was wondering whether I would be able to continue. Around this time, Stanzin also moved ahead. Till about the 12th or 13th kilometre, I kept thinking of giving up. But our coach Savio used to remind us not to give up and instead try to complete the race. That kept me going,’’ she said.

Skarma was up in front for a good part of the race. At around kilometer-18, on Mumbai’s well-known Marine Drive, she began to slow down a bit. That was the point, Stanzin took the lead. According to all three runners, none of them were focused on podium positions or even aware of where they stood in the line of runners racing to the finish. “ We run in pursuit of an improved timing, that’s all,’’ Stanzin Dolkar said. The runner from Lamayuru completed the race in one hour, 25 minutes and 47 seconds to emerge overall winner among women in the half marathon at 2025 TMM. Skarma (1:26:59) placed second and Tashi (1:29:27), third. For Skarma, it would seem a smashing debut in Mumbai. A person who speaks thoughtfully, she looked happy with the outcome. But her heart continued to be in the 10K. She still thinks of herself as a 10K runner and plans to do the 10K through 2025. She believes that by then the team’s coaches – Savio and Tsering Stobgais (he is also the team’s manager for their Mumbai visits) – will decide whether she should embrace the half marathon or not. Tashi, whose positive attitude is infectious, had mixed feelings about her result. “ The race was good but I am not satisfied with my timing. I did not have any inkling of a podium position when I finished. So, realizing that I was third was a surprise; a bonus,’’ she said smiling. For team Ladakh, it was a clean sweep of podium positions in the women’s half marathon. But Ladakh’s half marathon story at 2025 TMM, doesn’t end there.

For the past few years at TMM, Stanzin Chondol has been a promising talent in the half marathon from Ladakh. At 2023 TMM, she had finished third in her age group with timing of 1:26:14. In 2024, she finished second in her age group. Hailing from Zanskar and familiar with TMM through previous visits to Mumbai with the Ladakh team, this college student had a run up to 2025 TMM that was similar to that of her team mates but with a twist at the end; a twist, which may have made a difference. Her 2024-2025 season began with a first place in the 10K in Drass and a second place in the half marathon in Leh. Then, this runner, known best for the half marathon and who hasn’t done any of Ladakh’s own ultramarathons, enlisted for a run of 76 kilometres in Spiti and finished second. “ I went to Spiti because they had announced a laptop for the winner. Eventually, they gave cash prizes. But I was able to buy a laptop with the prize money. A laptop is very useful for Power Point presentations in college,’’ she said. Following Spiti, Stanzin placed thirteenth among women doing the half at the Kashmir International Marathon. Then came the twist. She had to represent Ladakh University at a national level sports meet in Goa. This was on January 18, the day before 2025 TMM. Having run the 10K in Goa and finished fourth, she dashed back to Mumbai that evening and ran TMM’s half marathon early morning January 19. “ My body was tight and my hamstring was hurting. I thought of giving up but managed to complete nonetheless,’’ she said. Forty-seven seconds after Tashi Ladol completed her half marathon in third place, it was Stanzin Chondol who crossed the finish line in Mumbai with timing of 1:30:14, making it a 1,2,3,4–sweep for Ladakh. Zanskar’s Stanzin also secured second place in her age category for women (same as last year), just behind Lamayuru’s Stanzin.

When contacted, Savio said that Ladakh’s half marathon runners were currently in a sweet spot. “ The four of them are more or less of the same level of competence. They train together and keep pushing each other to improve. That’s good for them,’’ he said, hinting alongside that nothing is permanent in life and athletics. There will always be the question of how long a sweet spot lasts. As much as results in the half marathon shone for Ladakh this year, it was tough going for the team in the full 42 kilometre-race. Jigmet Dolma, their best-known marathoner, had prepared better than last year for 2025 TMM. She was running in the Indian women’s elite segment. “ My training was okay and I was happy with it,’’ she said. Jigmet had also reached Mumbai sufficiently early to get used to the heat and humidity. But inexplicably on yet another warm and humid race day in Mumbai, she began developing pain on her side and in the chest region in the early part of the race itself. It affected her pace and she had to slow down. She struggled and continued as best as she could till about kilometer-30. Then, she gave up. It made sense to stop, prevent any further damage and preserve oneself to train and run well at the marathon in New Delhi, due in February second-half. According to her, there were 17 women in the Indian elite category of the 2025 Mumbai marathon. Of that almost half didn’t complete the race.

Jigmet’s result in 2025 has a backdrop to it and it is something authorities in Leh could help address. Many Indian athletes come from tough circumstances. Getting a secure job is something they all dream of. But it is also important that jobs allow them time for training. A year ago in 2024, after she finished the 2024 TMM sixth among Indian elite women (she developed pain in her shoulder and hamstring at 31-32 kilometres and had to slow down), Jigmet had spoken to this blog of challenges she faced in training (https://shyamgopan.com/2024/01/26/2024-tmm-musings/). She held a temporary job with the police in Ladakh and wasn’t able to train twice a day (typically training hard in the morning and an hour of easy running in the evening) as elite athletes are required to. Asked in 2025 if the situation had changed, she said that her job was yet to be made permanent and although accepted for employment for her strength in sports, her training was still not back to twice a day. The predicament was highlighted by Savio as well. Running with elite athletes – at that pace and for so long – is not easy. One has to train systematically and diligently for it. “ Jigmet is able to train only once a day. I think she has opted for the evening shift at work. At the level of athletes like her, an hour of easy running in the evening would mean about 10 kilometres covered. Multiplied by the number of days a week she trains, that is not a small mileage. When Jigmet is unable to train twice a day, it basically means that her overall mileage in training has decreased,’’ Savio said, pointing out how limitations imposed by one’s job, can hurt athletes. Jigmet was a podium finisher at TMM in the Indian women’s elite category in 2019; she has also been part of Indian teams for marathons abroad. Her former teammate in running the women’s marathon, Tsetan Dolkar, now works as a coach in Leh.

At 2025 TMM, Jigmet’s fellow runner from Ladakh, Disket Dolma, was making her debut in the Indian women’s elite category. She hails from Ladakh’s Changthang region and works as a cook. She had run in Mumbai before as part of Ladakh’s running team. But elite was an altogether new challenge. “ Initially I was quite nervous about being in the elite category. After I met the other runners in the segment, I relaxed a bit,’’ she said. In the elite category for the first time, Disket found the pace of running a bit daunting. The elite runners from overseas were in a class by themselves and beyond the reach of most Indians. Keeping up with the Indian elites was possible for Disket but it was challenging. For a good portion of the race, she ran at the tail end of the Indian women’s elite segment. Disket too remembered Savio’s words asking the Ladakhi runners not to give up. Past the race’s half-way point, after the Sea Link bridge, she found herself going past a few of the Indian elite runners. Her perseverance had paid off. Disket completed her debut in the Indian women’s elite segment at TMM in ninth place with timing of three hours, 19 minutes and 29 seconds compared to her open category-timing of 3:22:08 (but first place in her age group) from 2024 TMM. This, in an elite race with late start (the open category begins at 5 AM, the elites at 7.20 AM), on a warm and humid day. She now looks forward to running the marathon in Delhi, where too, she is in the elite segment for Indian women.

What can a freelance journalist hailing from Kerala and living in Mumbai do, after hearing these accounts? I asked Stobgais and Stanzin Dolkar, how to say congratulations as the people of Ladakh do. Tashi Delek – that’s what you say, I was told. I tucked it away in mind, for a potential headline. Conversation over, I requested for a final group photograph of the whole team, which also included Manzoor Hussain (he completed the marathon at 2025 TMM in 2:55:07) and Namgyal Lhamo, who is into trail running.  That done, I took leave of the runners. On the road below the apartment, I stopped at a small hole-in-the-wall café for bun maska and chai. I thought of my favourite brew in the mountains – ginger, lemon, honey tea. No place like Ladakh for a glass of it.

(The author, Shyam G Menon, is a freelance journalist based in Mumbai)               

At the 2024 IAU 100 KM World Championship held in Bengaluru in December, president of the International Association of Ultrarunners (IAU), Dr Nadeem Khan, spared some time to talk to this blog. Excerpts from the conversation:

Where do things stand as far as ultrarunning events in India go?

Events in India are definitely going ahead. NEB Sports is doing an amazing job with these races. Ultrarunning has gotten better and athletes are growing in numbers and doing very well on the international stage. It is exciting to see the growth of the sport in India. Today (December 7, 2024) is a prime example. The organization of the race is near perfect. Athletes are enjoying themselves.

On the progression towards including ultrarunning as an Olympic sport what is the current status? Is it being pursued?

As an organization IAU has agreed to the fact that if anything from the world of ultrarunning makes it to the Olympics it will be trail running. This is something we mentioned two years ago. That hasn’t changed. What has changed is that the community of trail running has got a lot stronger. We partnered with ITRA, WMRA (World Mountain Running Association) and World Athletics to organize the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships. It is very exciting. It is a championship in a whole different world altogether – multiple events in very scenic locations. One was held in Thailand, another in Innsbruck, Austria and we will be holding one in Canfranc in Spain next year. There is a lot of work being done on trail running to ensure that it becomes a sport that is watched and participated in across the globe. There are a lot of discussions happening but nothing formal yet.

What kind of distances are being considered for trail running?

Nothing has been decided. The trick is to have a proposal that is attractive enough to make it to the Olympics.

You are currently at the 100 km world championships. The 50 km is very close to the marathon. When a person looks at the Olympics logically there is no reason why any of these distances or durations shouldn’t make it to the Olympics because you have stadiums and venues to run a 24-hour race and there are events like the decathlon which go on for two days. How did discussions on ultrarunning distances pan out and how did trail running emerge as a choice?

If you look at decathlon, for instance, each of the 10 events within the decathlon lasts for a much shorter period of time and not for two days. A lot of the Olympic events are decided on the basis of how attractive they are on television. When it comes to trail running, the scenic atmosphere where the races are held, may adapt well to television broadcast. The 24-hour run is an amazing event. I used to do it. But when it comes to broadcasting these events, trail running makes sense. We have tried to push the 100 km and the 24-hour races for consideration at the Olympics but we did not get a positive response. In the opinion of some of our partners, trail running might be the best bet.

In spaces like the 100 km and the 24-hour events what is IAU doing to make them globally watched as a sport which may make it to the Olympics?

We are doing that via these world championships that we keep organizing across the globe. We are giving 40 odd countries opportunities on the international stage. That in itself is a positive direction. The next step would be to increase the caliber of athletes and step up the caliber of organization of these events. A multi-faceted approach is needed from all different directions.

What are the key points in stepping up the caliber of athletes?

India is a good example. Many Indian runners are making it to the podium now in international races. It is quite exciting to see that. We have seen huge improvement in the level of athletes whenever we bring the championships to the country they belong. For instance, when athletes bring home a medal the Athletics Federation of India (AFI), now called Indian Athletics, takes notice. AFI has been a huge support to ultrarunning here. By providing an international stage, we are also contributing to the growth of the sport locally and domestically. The flip side is that we cannot just host a championship and then walk away. We need to ensure that the development of the sport continues beyond the championships. Having these championships is the catalyst for further growth of the sport. The other side of the story is to have support from athletic federations of many countries. The more the number of federations, it means greater presence of ultrarunning in those countries. It is a multi-pronged approach. This year I travelled to many countries, promoting the sport, talking to federation heads and in the process hoping to get a lot more countries to participate in ultrarunning events as we move forward.

In terms of geographies where would IAU take the championships to? Would Asia and Africa be the new geographies you would look at?

We choose the best bids, whoever offers the best bid. We are also cognizant of the fact that we cannot organize in just one continent, whether it is Asia or Europe or America. We have to go everywhere. It just happened that we got the best bids from Asia. If not the global championships it will be the continental championships.

In other sports such as sport climbing there were a series of world cups that culminated into a world championships? Is there anything similar thought about to keep the calendar of ultrarunning busy?

Ultrarunning needs a huge recovery time. Also, the clientele is different. Very few of the ultrarunners are professional runners. Many of them work for a living. They may be doctors, engineers, teachers, business people. They have day jobs that they have to go back to once the race is over. Travelling around the world to attend these races will be difficult for them. We used to have something called a 50K World Trophy Final. We used to host 50K championships in 20 countries and the leading finishers of these would get invited to run the World Trophy Final. We used to have two 50K World Trophy events but these were individually driven and not Federation driven. We converted the 50K World Trophy to a 50K World Championships. Eventually, our goal is to bring everything under the umbrella of a championship.

(The authors, Latha Venkatraman and Shyam G Menon, are independent journalists based in Mumbai)