Daily Times

Faizan Zulfiqar and Enub claimed top spots in the Islamabad Marathon 2024 organized here at the Trail 3 Parking on Sunday.

Faizan Zulfiqar bagged the first position in male category Full Marathon while Umair and Mubaris Bukhari grabbed second and third positions, respectively.

In Full Marathon female category, Enub, Amina Shah and Ayesha Mastoor took first, second and third positions, respectively. In Half Marathon, male category, Naveed, Irfan and Naghman took first, second and third positions, respectively.

In Half Marathon female category, Jennie, Christina Vezel and Huma Rehman took first, second and third positions, respectively. In 10km male category, Akhtar, Riaz and Waqar Ahmed took first, second and third positions, respectively.

In 10km female category, Rabeela Farooq, Maheen Tahir and Anum Tahir took first, second and third positions, respectively.

In 5km male category, Samiullah, Kamil Hussain and Junaid Dildar took first, second and third positions, respectively.

In 5km female category, Amna Khan, Laila Kazmi and Kanwal took first, second and third positions, respectively. People from all walks of life including children featured in the marathon to promote and encourage the healthy activity in the federal capital.

Hundreds of participants from different the cities of Pakistan along with the diplomatic community based in Pakistan participated in the 4th edition of Adam’s Islamabad Marathon organized by enthusiasts from the running community Islamabad Run With Us (IRU).

Despite some drizzle and overcast weather conditions a great increase in the number of participants from last year was witnessed as over 1500 runners participated in the different categories.

The Islamabad Marathon 2024 was organized with full support of Capital Development Authority, District Administration Islamabad and Capital Traffic Police.

Qasim Naz, the founder of Islamabad Run With Us said the main objective of the event was to promote healthy lifestyle, promote marathon tourism and project a positive image of Pakistan all over the world.

The runners also passed through Shakarparian as they completed their 21.1 and 42.2 km distances.

Ambassador of Denmark to Pakistan, Jakob Linulf participated in the run and appreciated the role of organizers in putting a great running event. Jakob also ran a full marathon last year along with his brother.

High Commissioner of Australia to Pakistan Neil Hawkins also attended the Islamabad Marathon and loved how the running community from different walks of life participated.

The event has a special appearance by a USA based veteran 74 years old Marathon runner, Brent Weigner, who ran his 398th Marathon and Pakistan was his 205th country to run a marathon.

Talking about his experience, Brent said, he loved the atmosphere and appreciated the love and warm welcome he got from the people of Pakistan.

The running event included five different categories to cater to encourage vast participation of all ages and of different athletic abilities. Full marathon of 42km, half marathon of 21 km, 10 km and 5 km running were the categories that were primarily chosen for the adults and teenagers.

A special category of ‘Kids Fun Run’ for children under 14 years was also organized to encourage children, and they loved their participation with great enthusiasm. To encourage the runners Cash Prizes were given to top 3 winners from all categories.

Chief Commissioner Islamabad, Anwar-ul-Haq who was the chief guest at the closing ceremony appreciated IRU for organizing an international level running event in Islamabad.

He also mentioned that very soon Islamabad would have safe and dedicated tracks for cycling to promote healthy activities.

President Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industries Ahsan Bakhtawar also attended the event and said he was very impressed by the dedication of the running community to organize such a big running event and committed to support such events in future.

“Adam’s Milk Foods is synonymous with healthy life and is always focused on developing and promoting a healthy lifestyle. Running is one of the healthiest sports and Adam’s always look forward to promoting it. IRU Marathon is one of its kind and Adam’s takes pride in becoming the title sponsor of this event”, said Babar Riaz, Commercial Director Adam Milk Foods Limited.

Gracing the occasion, Rina Saeed Khan, Chairperson Islamabad Wildlife Management Board (IWMB) said that Islamabad is gifted with beautiful outdoor locations for healthy activities and IWMB, is working very hard to manage the trails under the slogan of “My Waste, My Responsibility”.