Mumbai marathon to have its own anthem

“This was the race that made my identity,” said Kavita Raut, the Asian Games double medal winning Indian distance runner at the press conference of the Standard Charted Mumbai Marathon 2011, at the Trident, Mumbai, on Tuesday.

Raut, who had won the Mumbai Marathon in 2008, went on to win the bronze in the 10,000-metre run in the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games and the bronze in 5000 metres and silver in 10,000 metres runs at the Asian Games in Guangzhou.

The annual race, which brings the entire city to the streets either to run or to cheer the participants, will now have an anthem of its own which was released at the event.

It was also revealed that the Australian Sydney 2000 Olympic Gold medallist Cathy Freeman will be the event ambassador.

The 2011 marathon, which will be the eighth edition, has received 2,800 entries for the full marathon, while the half marathon has 11,000. The other races which include the Senior Citizens’ Run, the wheelchair event and the Dream Run have 1,800, 300 and 22,500 entries respectively.

The marathon has been a platform for a number of NGOs to increase awareness and raise funds for charity since its inception.

This year the number of NGOs registering themselves with the charity partner of the Marathon has increased to 179 from last year’s figure of 109.

The total prize money has been increased to $325,000, with elite men’s and women’s winners getting $36,000 and $35,000 respectively.