Top Marathons in India that attract huge crowd
Marathons have been a popular sporting event that became even more prominent with time. A few marathons are being hosted by India every year that receives a huge turnout of participants and spectators. Marathons are not only a platform for athletes and spectators, but they have become a source of entertainment. It also creates social awareness and raises funds for charity. Along with it, it attracts marketers for its brand value and the huge popularity it generates. EE identified some of the top marathons in India that attracts top sponsors and celebrities:
Delhi Half Marathon
Since 2005, Delhi has been witnessing Airtel Half MarathonWith around the month of November when the winter is just about to set in. This annual event is organized and promoted by Procam International that helps raise funds for charity. The 2013 marathon raised over 4.15 crore for charity with more than 31,000 participants.
Sponsors
Airtel Communications, Star Sports, Reebok, Kingfisher, DHL, Le Meridien, Max Healthcare, Times of India, Radio Mirchi
Famous Personalities
Anil Ambani, Bipasha Basu, Shah Rukh Khan, Arshad Warsi, Vijendra Singh, Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Kajol, Ajay Devgan, AR Rahman, Milkha Singh, Rahul Bose and others.
Mumbai Marathon
The Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon (SCMM) stands distinct as the biggest event and is recognized as Asia’s greatest full marathon. It is held on the third Sunday of January every year since 2004. Organized by Procam International and ranked as one among the top ten marathons in the world, it raises funds for non-profit organizations. The 2014 marathon raised over 20.11 crores and overall raised around 100 crores since 2004. The 2014 edition had more than 40,000 participants.
Sponsors
Standard Chartered, Tata Consultancy Services, Star Sports, Jabong.com, Trident Hotel, The Times of India, Radio Mirchi, Kingfisher, DHL, Prasar Bharti.
Famous Personalities
John Abraham, Akshay Kumar, Ranbir Kapoor, Vivek Oberoi, Anil Ambani, Tina Ambani, Juhi Chawla, Kalki Koechlin, Rahul Bose, Gulshan Grover, Gul Panag, Genelia Dsouza, Vidya Balan, Mike Powell, Kapil Dev, Steve Ovett and others.
World 10K Bangalore
TCS World 10K is an annual event held in Bangalore around mid May since 2008. The event is organized and promoted by Procam International. The marathon has raised more than 11.75 crore since 2008. This year there were more than 25,000 participants at the event.
Sponsors
The event is sponsored by Nike, Star Sports, Tata Consultancy Services, Kingfisher, DHL, ITC Hotel, Fortis Hospital, The Times of India, Radio Mirchi, Prasar Bharti.
Famous Personalities
John Abraham, Rahul Bose, Carl Lewis, Puneeth Rajkumar, Anil Ambani and others.
Marathons are the ideal place for companies to gain visibility and popularity as it receives huge footfall. The event receives people from different age groups and strata of society. It can be good place to hold experiential activities. Since, it is an annual event that attracts more followers each year, brands can leverage it to plan and execute creative activities and engage consumers.
