About 2500 people take part in Darjeeling Hills marathon

Siliguri: The 10th edition of Darjeeling Hills marathon, organised by Darjeeling Police took place on Sunday at Chowrasta in Darjeeling. About 2500 people from different parts of the country participated in the marathon.

The marathon was conducted with the theme ‘say no to drugs’. There were different categories in the 21 km and 10 km run, with a total cash award of Rs 9.8 lakh for both males and females.

Praveen Prakash, the Superintendent of Police said: “The event was successful. Many people from different places in India and one person from Sydney participated in the marathon. We had organised the Melo Tea Festival, which was another success. Tourists enjoyed the fest and the marathon as well.” This year, the registration amount was reduced and the cash award for the 21 km has been increased to Rs 1.25 lakh. The marathon route was IAFF and AIMS-certified (International measurement certified).

Henry Kiprono Togom, a resident of Sydney bagged the first position in the 21 km run for males. Sonika, from Hariyana in female category and Dibya Chettri in open female category came first in 21 km run.

Sabina Rai from Kalimpong Police bagged the first position in 10 km run for females, Kailash Chaudhary from Shillong in male category, Anjali Kumari from Bihar in 10 km female open run and Bhanu Pratap Aray from Uttarakhand became first in 10 km open run.