Run Leela Run!

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Amit Sheth, a Mumbai-based businessman and self-confessed couch potato, was 38 when he decided to run a marathon. He’d just watched his brother-in-law compete in the first ever Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon, in 2004. With mere months left for next year’s event, Amit began training in earnest.

“I was in no shape to run 42 km. There was no philosophy behind it, just that I had signed up and I had to do it. That was the first and greatest barrier — sticking to a resolve,” he says.
Amit would go on to finish his first marathon, and many more. With his wife Neepa, he would complete the 89-km Comrades Ultra Marathon, the largest in the world. And through the support of friends, he would raise over `75 lakhs for the Tata Memorial Hospital in Mumbai, making treatment possible for over 100 young cancer patients.
When you ask him about the journey, Amit has a John Bingham quote to offer: “The miracle is not that I finished the race, the miracle is that I had the courage to start.”

THE PRESENT DAY
Depending on the time of the day you’re reading this, the Celebration Mangalore Marathon or the Calicut Mini Marathon might be well under way, or over. At dawn, thousands of runners will have made their way to the start line, when the cities of Mangalore and Kozhikode are snug in bed, and begun the long run to the finish line.
The 2013 running calendar has over 30 marathon/half-marathon events listed — this, without counting the many low-profile, shorter runs (5, 10 or 15K events) organised all over the country. From Vadodara to Coimbatore, Auroville to Jaipur, Hyderabad to Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, there’s a marathon — and a half — in every part of the country.
And there are many enthusiasts who’re only too willing to tie up their shoelaces and toe the starting line, whether it is to raise money for a notable cause, embrace a fitter way of life or simply prove that they can go the distance.

WHO IS RUNNING
Rajesh Vetcha, veteran marathoner and founder of Hyderabad Runners, says the group has about 1,500 members — the youngest is 17, the oldest 81. “The bulk of our members, though, are in their mid-30s to 40s,” Vetcha says. “This is an endurance sport, it requires a certain amount of maturity. You need to sustain yourself for the training alone, which may last six to eight months.”
Hyderabad Runners includes “art collectors, dentists, housewives, businessmen, tea vendors and students”, a mix that Mumbai-based marathon trainer Raj Vadagama attests to. “I’ve been advising an 18-year-old student from Varanasi, a doctor from Surat and a Japanese expat,” Vadagama says.

WHY THEY’RE RUNNING
The most prominent reason why marathons have become popular is that running is a simple way to get fit. Says Mumbai-based musician, voiceover artiste and ultra marathoner Priya Darshini, “Sports has been inaccessible to a lot of people in our country — there is a lack of facilities and motivating environment. When something like this comes along, where all you need is a pair of running shoes — it’s liberating.”
Among the most recognisable veteran marathoners in India today, Ashok Nath breaks the boom into two stages. “Running is a natural activity, and the simplicity of the action appeals to people with otherwise cluttered lives. This has led to the second running boom with thousands of ordinary people taking to the sport. While the first running boom focused on performance, the recent boom is more diffused in its focus. People of all ages, from both genders, with varying reasons — ranging from weight loss, reclaiming their fitness, raising money for charity, beating stress — have taken to running,” says the Bengaluru-based entrepreneur (also a 4X Boston Marathon qualifier).
The boom has been fuelled by the “institutionalisation” the first surge wrought. When Rajesh Vetcha began running in 2004-2005, it took him 10 months to find a running partner. The situation has clearly changed now, and trainer Vadagama says that “Google gurus” are a dime a dozen.
Support systems for runners have become far more organised, especially in the last five years, believes Vaishali Kasture, the managing director of Goldman Sachs and a veteran half-marathoner who’s won gold at the SCMM.
“In the West, running is a popular and economic way to stay fit. Expats and returning Indian nationals brought it here,” she says.

MARATHONS UPPED THEIR PROFILE
Amit Sheth traces the explosion of marathon and half-marathon events to the first Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon, a decade ago. “Marathons before were so badly organised that they didn’t appeal to the general population, the recreational runners. The SCMM opened up a race that was world-class, professional — and telecast live,” he says.
Procam, promoters of the SCMM, as well as Airtel Delhi Half Marathon, the Bengaluru 10K and the Hyderabad 15K, are proud that they have created world-class events — races that have been rated “Gold Label” events.
Anil Singh, Procam’s managing director, says the SCMM in 2013 raised `20 crore for charity. In its first year, the half-marathon category at the SCMM could accommodate about 500 runners, now it can accommodate about 50,000.

RUNNING CULTURE
For these hordes of new runners, a training group is what many consider effective. And that has led to a running culture in not just the metropolises, but also tier II towns. For instance, Hyderabad Runners mentors running groups in Vishakapatnam and Mehboobnagar. Mumbai has a plethora of runners groups, like the popular Striders. And Bengaluru has formal groups like Runners for Life, Runners High and Pace Makers as well as informal ones like Bhukamp.
“These groups train as a team. They set the schedule and look forward to training together, and there is a lot of friendly chatter and swapping of notes,” says Vaishali.
Even if you run with a group, most marathoners admit that running a marathon is essentially a solitary activity. “It is a distance that forces you to reach within and find depths you didn’t know existed,” says Ashok Nath.

FORGING AHEAD
Marathons are great equalisers. “It is the only sport where the world number one and you, a CEO and a chawl-dweller, can start on th same line, run the same course,” says Rajesh Vetcha.
Most achievements start out as a mental victory or a physical victory, but running a marathon is a mix of both, points out Amit Sheth. Training for a marathon instills discipline. Vetcha agrees, “I often tell new runners that the toughest mile to cover is the one between your bed and the bathroom.”