Ranjeet's Experience in Airtel Delhi Half Marathon.

MY EXPERIENCE OF RUNNING AIRTEL DELHI HALF MARATHON 2016

:- RANJEET RAI

My name is Ranjeet Rai. I have run many marathons with team Run with Roshni. I hope to get opportunities to run with the team in the near future too. I feel very proud to say that I belong to Team Run with Roshni. The vision of the Run with Roshni Foundation (RWRF) is to create Gorkha runners who will win gold medals for India in the Olympic Marathon. I want to see the vision of the Foundation being fulfilled.

I have visited many places in India with team Run with Roshni. It is only because of RWRF that my dream of visiting places like Hyderabad, Bangalore, Shillong, Kolkata and now Delhi has been fulfilled. I not only visited these beautiful cities but I also got the opportunity to run in the Marathons organised in them.

I participated in the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon of 20th November 2016. My experience of running in this Marathon was the best among all the Marathons I have participated in till date. Five runners from Team RWRF along with Roshni Didi (didi is elder sister) began our journey to Delhi from Kalimpong on 16th November, 2016. We reached NJP around 1 pm. We had lunch together and boarded our train to Delhi at 2 pm.

It was for the first time that Roshni Di was also travelling with us. We got to learn many things from her. She not only mentored us about running in Marathons but also gave important lessons which will be very useful for us in our lives. I felt very happy and I would like to thank her for being always there for us. I hope that Roshni Didi will continue to guide us like this in the future too. 

Our train was running almost 4 hrs late and so we reached Old Delhi Station only at midnight. Arrangements for our stay had been made for us at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium Sports Hostel by our Honorable MP for Darjeeling Sri SS Ahluwalia Sir. He had sent cars to pick us up from the station itself. We reached the Hostel at 2 am and slept around 3 am.

Next morning, Roshni Di took us for a practice run at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. It was the spot for our start as well finish for the Marathon too. I felt very happy and proud to run inside the Jawaharlal Stadium.

On 20th November 2016, the day for the Delhi half marathon was a very good one for our team. I personally finished my Half Marathon ( 21 KM) with a timing of 1 hr and 18 mins. Prior to this, my personal best timing had been 1 hr 23 mins. I felt very proud to have improved my timing by 5 mins.

After the Marathon, we were given an opportunity to meet with Mr.SS Ahluwalia our Honorable MP from Darjeeling along with the GTA Chief Mr. Bimal Gurung and Roshan Giri. I had the best experience of my life in Delhi till date.

I would like to offer my humble gratitude  to PUMA for providing me with running gear and the registration for ADHM 2016. PUMA has provided me with three pairs of running shoes, Tshirts and shorts for the year 2016. I am hopeful to get continuous support from PUMA in the future too. Thank you very much.

Note- Handwritten note in Nepali was typed by Roshni Rai, which was later translated into English by Mr. Mohanraj Thakuri and edited by Mrs. Sheila Rai Fudong.