J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Completes Half Marathon in Mumbai
Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah finished the Tata Mumbai Half Marathon in impressive time. He completed the 21.07-kilometer distance in less than two hours. The Chief Minister ran with a hooded neon green cap covering his face. Five elite runners from the Mumbai Police Sports unit accompanied him throughout the race.
Bystanders along the route cheered enthusiastically as the political leader passed by. They enjoyed watching him transition from running a state to running a marathon. Police Inspector and Sports Officer Sudhakar Shitap independently participated in the same event. He noted that Abdullah displayed excellent fitness levels during the run.
Japanese Diplomat Runs as Anime Character Luffy
Noriaki August, a minister at the Embassy of Japan in India, made a colorful appearance at the marathon. The 51-year-old diplomat has served as minister for political affairs since 2024. He previously worked as director of media affairs and interpreter for the late Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
August chose to run dressed as 'Luffy', a popular anime character among Indian youth. His costume aimed to promote socio-cultural ties between India and Japan. The diplomat completed the half marathon while drawing attention to this cultural connection.
Senior Officials and Iron Men Complete Marathon Challenges
Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Iqbal Singh Chahal achieved a remarkable milestone. He finished his 21st consecutive Tata Mumbai Half Marathon with a time of 2 hours 14 minutes. Chahal has participated in every edition since the event began in 2004.
Navi Mumbai Municipal Commissioner Kailas Shinde tackled the full marathon distance. He completed 42 kilometers in 4 hours 39 minutes and 23 seconds on Sunday.
Two Iron Men athletes treated the full marathon as a recovery run. Swapnil Chinchwade, a 42-year-old developer from Pune, finished in 5 hours at an easy pace. He recently completed his third Iron Man challenge on December 7, 2025. That event included a 3.8-kilometer swim, 180-kilometer cycling, and a 42-kilometer run within 13 hours.
Prasad Patil, the other Iron Man participant, serves as a state PWD executive engineer in Akola. He particularly enjoyed running on the new Coastal Road route during the marathon.
