Chennai Marathon

Friends, This was a perfect example of very good disorganization from Rotary. I was shocked when my fellow marathon runners Ram and Harish told me that the marathon was stopped at 9:50 a.m. after running for around 29-30 KMs. I am not considering my agony so much as thinking about the people unlucky enough to have traveled here from distant places for the race (including foreigners). How did they feel when someone stopped them after they had been running for three hours? Perhaps it damages India's image as well. If such events attract foreign tourism, the government should look into securing the proper execution of such events. I feel like going to consumer court for this. Maybe I will. Either they should have announced that the marathon would be stopped after the top few runners finished, or they should have called it the "Marathon for Winning" rather than the "Marathon for Peace." Starting from the registration, it was a mess. I was told to go to Neheru Stadium for the medical tests and T-shirt between Jan. 3 and Jan. 31. But when I went there, I was told to come back on Feb. 4. On Feb. 4 the areas was a big mess. There was one doctor testing all the participants and the participants were getting lined-up in the sun for their race number and medical test. Standing for three hours before the day of the marathon is quite frustrating. To add to it all, on the official race website, it said that you could have the medical test performed by any doctor, and then you could submit the paperwork for it when you collected your race number and T-shirt. But nobody was allowed to get their number or shirt until they had the medical exam performed on the spot. When I asked whether the runners from other countries were also standing in line, I was told that they had a separate test in the Appolo Hospital. Overall my first marathon experience was pretty bad. Such types of experiences could discourage people from participating in a marathon, especially when the police and the organizers stop you after three hours. Let us hope not to repeat the same mistake and create another BAD RECORD in the history of the marathon. - Ajendra

Thanks for organising a marathon in Chennai. The website says the marathon is for 6 hours. I have run more than 10 marathons in the U.S and nowhere they stop the marathons before the 6 hours mark. You must encourage slow runners to run up to the 6 hours time limit as specified in the website.

Had good fun running this marathon. But there should be more water spots on the way. Hope to run next year also.