This story is from April 18, 2015

Marathon organizers reject 60 entries from abroad

There are just five international entries for the Third Night Marathon to be held here on Saturday because the organizers have disallowed at least 60 other athletes from abroad to take part in the event.
Marathon organizers reject 60 entries from abroad
SURAT: There are just five international entries for the Third Night Marathon to be held here on Saturday because the organizers have disallowed at least 60 other athletes from abroad to take part in the event.
Many unknown athletes disappear once the race is over. This is the main reason for Surat Marathon Company to refuse permission to non-serious athletes to take part in the event, which has got affiliation from the Athletics Federation of India (AFI).

At least 25 international athletes had registered for the 2014 event. Four athletes from an African country registered for the race at the last moment in the Night Marathon that was held in 2014. Their entries could not be verified. They created problems for the organizers by claiming that they had won the race. When the organizers told them their timing had not been recorded at different points of the race route, they fled.
This is also one of the reasons why the organizers are acting tough this time. Surat Marathon winner gets prize money of Rs 1.2 lakh.
Surat Marathon Company race director Neeraj Verma told TOI, "Some people sneak into the country as athletes. We are yet to come across any such incident in Surat. But we want to be careful."
Ian Ladbrooke, incharge of international athletes in Surat Marathon, said, "I did receive a number of applications from athletes belonging to Ethiopia, Nigeria and Kenya. However, they were unable to provide certain information on timing that we had sought to verify their credentials."

He said, "Marathon is new to India and the market is exciting. Some people want to enter other country and this is a good ruse for them. We have to be careful about invitations."
Many members of the Ethiopian team had disappeared from London airport on their way to participate in a track and field event in Scotland a few years ago, officials said. They said many runners struggle to get back to their own countries as they arrive on one way ticket. We want to avoid this in Surat, the officials said.
Sunita Godara, Asian Marathon winner of 1992, who is one of the coordinators of the Third Night Marathon, said, "It is good that the entries are being monitored. Invitations should only be sent to runners whose credentials have been verified."
author
About the Author
Himanshu Bhatt

Himanshu Bhatt is assistant editor at The Times of India, Surat. He reports on a range of issues including Surat Municipal Corporation, the district collector's office, business and politics. His special interests are in covering politics and sports. His hobbies include reading, listening to old Hindi film songs and classical Carnatic music. He likes reading up history of the 19th and 20th century, especially World War II.

End of Article
FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA