Sports minister Kiren Rijiju flags off 15th Delhi Half Marathon with largest ever participants

Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju flagged off 15th Airtel Delhi Half Marathon from Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium today. Following a countdown, Rijiju fired a pistol in the air to begin the run. 

According to the organizers, the number of registration for all categories has gone highest for the 15th edition of the Delhi Half Marathon ie-40,633 participants. 

Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports, Kiren Rijiju flagged off Delhi Half Marathon at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium earlier this morning. pic.twitter.com/TvLERbBSvi

— ANI (@ANI) October 20, 2019

The Great Delhi Run has registered an exceptional 16,962 runners while the half marathon witnessed a spike of 11% with 13,115 participants. The 10 km run registrations witnessed a jump of 77% to 8,553. The senior citizen run received 1430 registrations, while the champions with a disability will have 573 inspiring individuals defying all odds to complete the distance. 

The IAAF Gold Label race has prize money of USD 275,000.

This year the Delhi Half Marathon is supported by New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC), who will provide their expertise to ensure all the waste on the route is efficiently managed. Also, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) for the first time ever has associated with the event to provide special metro services.

The Delhi Police had issued a traffic advisory ahead of the Delhi Half Marathon on Sunday, officials said. 

All the runs, except the 10 km, shall be flagged off from the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium and will also end there. The 10-km run will start from the Jai Singh Road and will finish at JLN Stadium, the officials said. 

(Inputs from ANI)