Manipal is a name that has been synonymous with education and healthcare for the past few decades. With the Manipal Hospitals being a household name today, and the Manipal Education Group attracting students from all over the country, the recently ‘Institute of Eminence’ is a hub for educational, recreational, co-curricular, and cultural endevours of all kinds.
Whether it is an Engineer pursuing Birding and writing many a book on Birds, or a Doctor deciding to be a singer, Manipal has seen it all! Only adding to these feathers, is Manipal’s annual Marathon!
Organized completely by a team of passionate students from the Manipal Runners’ Club right from the registrations, database, route design and expo to the volunteering, photography, and event management, overseen meticulously by the Volunteer Services Organization, 2019’s edition 8000 runners from all over the world participating in it making it the largest Student Organized Marathon in the Country!
Where do you go from there? You think big. You do it all! You run the distance Phidippides ran from Marathon to Athens with the clarion call of victory!
Now in its 4th edition, with an IAAF Certified Route for the Full and Half Marathons, the Manipal Marathon is set to take running in the quaint little university town to another level. With kids, young students, staff, homemakers, corporates, young and old alike, all running for a cause along the untouched pristine beaches and the seamless intertwining of modernity in high rise buildings of Manipal and the culture and creativity of the temple town of Udupi, the Marathon is more than a running event. It’s a celebration of life, a celebration of love and a celebration of community!
What started off as a passionate dream of a few runners who lost no chance to run whenever their academics allowed them to in college joined by the local populace whenever they could has grown into a community like no other with numerous students and staff, both current and past taking the spirit forward!
The first edition was around the theme “Run for Stroke Awareness.” The scale was unprecedented for the small town. From then, it only grew to accommodate more in both quality and quantity. The 2nd time, Manipal ran against drug abuse. The Runners Club kept the spirit alive with multiple runs through out the year, for Cancer Awareness, for survivors of Sexual Abuse and to celebrate the joy of running! The previous edition was something long over due. Manipal ran for Mental Health Awareness. And by attracting 8000 runners, the Marathon became the largest completely student organized Marathon in India! Sketchers ranked it one of the most loved events of the country!
This year, the stakes are high. The expectations are high. Rahul Dravid launched the theme last year. Manipal is to run promoting Organ Donation. If anyone can pull it off, it’s the enthusiastic bunch of students behind it. A legacy is being carried forward. History is being made!
Join in for the celebration on the 9th of February, at the KMC Greens. Run the distance you think you can. If you think you can’t, run all the same. You never know, your body may surprise you! The Marathon is accompanied by a Carnival with lots of sports, games, music, dance, performances, and most importantly the scrumptious food and hospitality Udupi is most famous for!
Come, run with us!
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