THE RACE MARKS ITS ENTRY INTO THE GUINNESS BOOK OF WORLD RECORDS
Thousands of enthusiastic runners took to the streets of Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC), Mumbai to participate in the ‘IIFL JITO Ahimsa Run Powered by Torrent Group’ on April 2nd, 2023. This unique race was held to spread the message of peace and non-violence among people across the world. The event kicked off at MMRDA Ground, with the race passing through various corporate neighbourhoods across BKC before the runners finally circled back to the finish line.
Bollywood Actor Aditya Roy Kapur was the guest of honour and was seen cheering the crowd. The participants ran across four established categories – a 21 km half marathon, 10 km and 5 km timed runs, and a 3 km fun race. For the first time over 500 visually impaired children aged above 12 years from across Maharashtra participated in the run. A 80 year old woman was the oldest to participate in the run. This run marked its entry into the Guinness World Records, Word Records India, and the Limca Book of Records for the most runners to run in multiple locations for the cause of Ahimsa (non-violence).
The event was graced by prominent personalities including Mangal Prabhat Lodha, Mumbai Police Commissioner Vivek Phansalkar, Jt CP Satyendra Chaudhary, Amruta Fadnavis, Motilal Oswal, Subhash Runwal, Sukhraj Nahar, Prithviraj Kothari, Pradeep Rathore and Jayant Jain.
Reshma Kevate won the 21 km JITO Ahimsa half marathon run in female open while Vivek More won in the men’s open category. Poonam Sonune in female open and Rohit Kumar in men’s open clinched the winners prize in the 10 km run. Jyoti Singh and Viraj Patil respectively won in the female and men’s 5 km category.
“We are extremely delighted with the overwhelming response we have received for IIFL JITO Ahimsa Run in Mumbai. The event was a highly inclusive event that represented people of all ages, gender, communities and sporting abilities coming together to spread the message of peace and non-violence. This is the first time in global history that over 1, 20,000 runners joined for a cause across 65 cities in India simultaneously. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to the winners, participants and people who have supported this noble cause”, said Prithviraj Kothari, Chairman, JITO Mumbai Zone.
“IIFL JITO Ahimsa Run presented a great opportunity for those who wanted to run for a purpose. It was very encouraging for us to witness the participation from thousands of runners and spectators. The race firmly accomplished its aim to unite all Indians with a common cause of peace, empathy, and non-violence. We are extremely grateful to the participants, partners and public who have supported us in making this run a resounding success” said Mahendra Jain, Vice Chairman, JITO, Mumbai Zone.
