Runners pull out of half marathon

As Delhi continued to reel under hazardous levels of pollution, the situation has cast a long shadow on marathon runners, who are skeptical about participating in the upcoming Airtel Delhi Half Marathon, scheduled for Sunday.

While some of the top pacers have already pulled out of the event, those still training for it are battling health issues.

The Capital's air quality has been plummeting at a dangerously fast pace for the last two weeks because of smog, training the long-distance runners for the event has become an uphill task. A lot of them said their once-loved activity of running in the mornings has now become plagued with breathing trouble, watery eyes and so on.

Nikita Das, a long-distance runner, said the last eight months of her training have gone down the drain as her stamina is dipping by the day. Her team trains in areas with a sizeable green cover, such as Nehru Park, Lodhi Road, and Okhla Bird Sanctuary.

"But, that doesn't help. The precautions are not enough because our lungs have gone for a toss. I built a strong stamina by training over the last eight months. Now, it's taking a nosedive with every training session. I start panting within a few minutes," she said.

The runners are frequently suffering from breathlessness, watery eyes, headaches, and sore throats. "It is difficult to train these days. My eyes burn all the time and though I wear a mask, it hasn't given much respite," said another runner Somali Mahant.

The poor air quality has prompted some of the prominent faces at the marathon to watch it from the sidelines this year. One such person is Reeti Sahai, a pro-runner, who has been participating in the event for the last six years. She had been training every morning till the last week, when she finally gave in to smog.

"I chose to ignore the magnanimity of the situation last year. However, the health scare is too much in our faces. I felt deprived of energy while running in the morning," said Sahai, who won't be participating this year.