Half-Marathon in Full Smog

Lokmarg met some of the runners and this is what they had to say: Anshul Saxena, Telecom Firm Employee “I completed my half marathon with my personal best timing of 2:17:03. I could not practice due to high smog levels in Delhi and was expecting to finish it within three hours. But the weather was better and the incredibly inspirational people running aside just kept me going. Proud of my city and am sure we can overcome the problems with or without any government support.”

Vipul Mahajan, Software Engineer “I came all the way from Mumbai to participate in half-marathon. I was sceptical about the air quality from what I heard in the news, but today the weather was fine. Though morning was bit cold otherwise it was all good and I did not face any difficulty while running.”

Kartikeya Mishra, Engineer “The weather was just fine today. Yesterday it had rained so air was not that bad. The organizers made sure that we get proper medical assistance when needed. I’ll participate in this event next year too.”

Abhinav Raj, Law Firm Employee “I completed this race in less time than expected. I would like to take part in ONGC half-marathon in January when weather is more challenging. There was no influence of bad air on running.”

Gautam Sikka, IT Firm Employee “There was little to no effect of air pollution. Air quality is better than previous days when Delhi was engulfed by smog.”

Nirmal Kumar, IT Firm Employee “It is company policy to make sure it’s employees are in good health. I participated in 6 kilometer corporate race. It was wonderful experience of running in events like these. Air and weather are comparatively better today so it was a day spent well.”