Three Indian marathons backed by TOI get 'gold label'

MUMBAI: Indian athletics was served a triple treat on Friday. Three long distance events - the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon, the Sunfeast World 10K Bangalore and the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon - have all been allotted the gold label by the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) for the year 2010. The gold label is the pinnacle of organisational excellence and is awarded by the IAAF every year.
No other country in Asia boasts of having three IAAF gold label events.India now shares this honour with US, which has three gold label marathons. UK tops the list with four gold label events, including a marathon. Interestingly, The Times of India is a media partner in all the three events.
The Mumbai Marathon will now have the same appeal as the London, Chicago or Berlin marathons respectively and will be ranked among the top 12 marathons in the world. "I am delighted that for 2010 India will feature three IAAF gold label road races. This is a wonderful achievement," remarked Sean Wallace-Jones, the IAAF senior manager for road running.
Expressing his delight, Adille Sumariwalla, working president of the Athletics Federation of India (AFI), said, "I hope that all the other marathons in India also aspire to acquire such a status."
Lauding the promoters, Procam International, who handle all the three events in Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore, Wallace-Jones said, "It is indeed rare for one promoter, Procam International, to successfully meet the high standards demanded by the IAAF for gold label events."
World's top 10 marathons: Boston, Chicago, New York, London, Berlin, Tokyo, Paris, Beijing, Seoul, and Mumbai.