Recognised as the National Marathon Championship by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI), the event will see runners from all walks of life compete in four different categories: Full Marathon (42.2k), Half Marathon (21.1k), Timed 10 K and 5K Swachh Bharat Run.

The Full Marathon will start at 4:00 am from the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, followed by the Half Marathon at 6.15 am, and the Timed 10k and 5k run at 7:30 am and 8:30 am respectively.

This year’s edition will see close to 2500 runners aiming for supremacy in the Full Marathon, 6000 runners attempting the Half Marathon, 5500 running enthusiasts participating in the Timed 10K run while the 5K run will have a total participation of 4500.

The 5th edition will also see 820 dedicated runners who have participated in all five editions of the marathon.

86-year-old Janardhan B R will be the oldest runner on the grid in the Full Marathon while Daljit Mirchandani, 72, will be the senior-most in the Half Marathon. The IDBI Federal Life Insurance New Delhi Marathon has carved a niche for itself not only amongst the running community of the country but also across different sections of the society including the armed forces, corporate sector and NGOs. Close to 1000 runners from the armed forces and 250 from the police force will make their presence felt across different categories. Additionally, a total of 14 corporates have fielded their teams.

The IDBI Federal Life Insurance New Delhi Marathon has always been an inclusive run with para-athletes, visually-impaired runners along with guide athletes and runners representing various NGOs participating across the various categories. This year, The Challenging Ones (TCO), founded by Indian Army veteran and accomplished blade runner, Major D.P Singh, is the official NGO partner for the marathon. The Challenging Ones will field a team of para-athletes including wheelchair runners, amputees and visually-impaired runners.

“We are very happy with the response received this year and the diverse participation of people from all walks of life. The IDBI Federal Life Insurance New Delhi Marathon has been growing in popularity every year and this year’s numbers just prove it. In the first edition, we had 5000 runners and participation has grown fourfold over the five years, with close to 20,000 runners participating this year. I hope this positive trend continues and Delhi leads the way, as the country as a whole adopts a fit and healthy lifestyle,” said Karthik Raman, Chief Marketing Officer, IDBI Federal Life Insurance.