Mumbai Ultra Marathon, 2025 – The 12 Hour Run.

The Mumbai Ultra Marathon, a unique 100% charity event to raise fund for the Pediatric Cancer patients under treatment at Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai is being scheduled on 15^th. August, 2025.

Since its inception, the TATA – Mumbai Ultra Marathon have drawn several enthusiasts from all walks of life. These enthusiasts are Runners; Cheerleaders; Officials who leaves no stone unturned in magnifying the peer objectives of this omnipotent festival.

Several runners assimilate to compete in the Ultra-Marathon event, in the presence of electrifying audiences with incredible feats of speed, strength, endurance and skill, as personal best performances and new records are benchmarked. However, the exceptional talent that underpin such performances is incomprehensible to most casual observers who often cannot appreciate how unique these athletes are. In this regard, endurance running, specifically the ultra-marathon, a 12 hours foot race, provides one of the few occasions in such a sporting event, that permits sport scientists and fans alike to directly compare differences in the physiology between recreational and elite competitors. While these individuals may all cover the same distance, on the same course, on the same day – their experience and the physiological and psychological demands placed upon them are vastly different. There is, in effect, a “race within a race”.

In our today’s edition, we highlight the superior physiology of the elite endurance athlete, emphasising the gap between elite competitors and well-trained, but less genetically endowed athletes. We draw attention to a range of inconsistencies in how current sports science practices are understood, implemented, and communicated in terms of the elite and not-so-elite endurance athlete; although the mission is “just not a competition to win”.

How do the performances of these elite athletes keep improving? Well! To the best of our belief, it is the culmination of changes in the culture of sports having afforded more opportunities to a greater number of athletes, especially females, enabling them to train full-time and receive medical and sport science support to assist in attaining their athletic goals. Technological breakthroughs in equipment design and the application of wearable devices have also ushered in a new area of data acquisition and analyses underpinning advances in training and performance in several sports. However, for the average recreational athlete, the so-called “weekend warrior”, the performances of a select few genetically endowed individuals are inconceivable and for the most part, unattainable.

Needless to mention, it is the endurance running, specifically the marathon, which offers a unique opportunity in modern-day sporting events whereby males and females, young and old, can line up in the same race as Olympic and world champions. As such, the marathon provides one of the few occasions in sport that allows sport scientists to directly compare and contrast the differences in the underlying physiology between well-trained recreational and world-class elite competitors.

The world of the elite athlete is dominated by extreme precision in outcomes; millimeters in a marathon and single decisions over a six-month season can separate glory from despair. Maverick News have contributed significantly in the international and multi-disciplinary sporting verticals, to develop a tiered framework that can be implemented both prospectively, and retrospectively to classify the caliber and training status of participants, which involves structured training, often with coaches, and a focus on improving speed, endurance, and overall performance. Mental toughness and strategic race planning are also key elements in competitive running.

While exploring the human experience, along with fostering understanding and respect between individuals and groups with diverse perspectives and identities, Maverick News, the Digital Partner for this year’s version epitomising humanity, is interacting with individuals associated with this noble cause, on a daily basis validating the full spectrum of human emotions, from joy to sorrow, and recognising their role in culminating this extravaganza of humanity.

DOCTOR CHETAN DHAMNE – Professor Tata Memorial Hospital & Marathoner:

“Children don’t get cancer because of bad habits like smoking or drinking or unhealthy eating habits. They get it just because of certain mutations in the genes that happened by chance. Nobody is at fault”, as Doctor Chetan has reaffirmed. Furthermore, stating that, the good thing is that most of the childhood cancers are curable. So, like acute leukemia, or a germ cell tumour, or a lymphoma more than 70 to 80% can be cured completely.

What is most vibrant, is what Dr. Chetan has revealed, “childhood cancer is curable. And to cure these children, we need this positive energy from the society and the help that comes forward. We know that we are privileged as doctors to be part of the mission to cure children with cancer. But we also know that we can only do what we can do because of all the people that surround us. As a doctor, we can only give treatment. But for treatment we need the money, the infrastructure, the trust of the people who come to us for treatment, support for children to stay in Mumbai for 6 to 9 months during the treatment, the food and nutrition that they require during treatment, we need blood and platelets to manage the side effects of the chemotherapy we give and so on. We cannot do it alone”.

When someone imagine a child with cancer – they resort to smiling even with a gloomy bald face. Their sympathies are undesirable, as they need to realise, how privileged they are, blessed to have a healthy body, that it’s a blessing.

He has urged the larger section of the society, “take an effort to maintain your health by doing activities like regular exercise or yoga or running. And join us at the Mumbai Ultra on the 15th of August. A 12-hour run dedicated to good health and raising funds for childhood cancer. If running is not your area of interest, then come forward and donate blood on the 17^th. of August across any of the blood donation camps held at multiple locations in the city”.

“I am a platelet donor and a blood donor. I don’t do it as often as some of the other people, but I can tell you it’s a great feeling. You have to experience the feeling. If you have any doubts in your mind, speak to a donor or one of the organizations, clear your doubts and come and donate”.

The demonstrative Cosmopolitanism in today’s world, which fosters tolerance and understanding can be well contemplated by sponsoring a runner or donating directly to Tata Memorial Hospital ImPaCCT foundation to help these children with cancer to get the right treatment at the right time.

Dr. Chetan has further stated that when chemotherapies are administered, children require a lot of blood and platelets because with the chemotherapy, the hemoglobin level recedes causing an abrupt plunging of the platelets, causing a life-threatening risk of bleeding. That is why blood is required abundantly, as similar in the case of invasive procedures. Blood and platelets cannot be manufactured in a factory. These come only from healthy people who volunteers to donate.

He has cited examples of foundations like “Save a Life” and “Gunavanti Kapoor” who have raised awareness and created a pool of donors over the years because of which the city of Mumbai has always a steady supply of blood for its daily needs. But this pool of donors is recirculating with as people move in and out of the city. So, new donors are needed to enter the donor pool. This is voluntary, and sourcing healthy people have become inevitable.

And that is what makes Mumbai, Mumbai; the spirit of coming forward and helping a stranger, that is why the marathon is named Mumbai ULTRA. We would like to see people come forward run for the cause donate for the cause of childhood cancer, in terms of financial support and blood donation. Keep up the spirit of Mumbai by coming forward and helping each other.

BRIJEN B DESAI – Recreational Endurance Athlete & Marathoner:

Been born and brought up in Bombay, an Engineer by Profession, Brijen Desai have been involved in to Running and Cycling since last 12 yrs. He started Running in 2014 by attempting Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon, a 21kms journey which not only provided the thorough enjoyment but also inspired him to leverage his sheer potentiality as an long distance runner.

In 2015, he came to know about the “15^th. August – 12 Hours” event at Shivaji Park and decided to explore his passion and endurance, in this unique “without any target distance barrier”.

According to him, The “15th August 12 hours” endurance run challenge is perfectly organised by the organisers themselves to provide a wonderful experience to all participants, adding by an impeccable planning for hydration, nutrition and medical support, along with provisions for rest area for the runners. The atmosphere and the energy is worthy experiencing. Event like this strengthens the bond among all the runners and the running community at large.

What appears from his suggestions, exploring the possibility of commencing the event from mid night instead of 05.00 Hours, thereby minimising, the exposure time to a blazing afternoon sun heat, and, curbing the pressure of the law administrating officials in controlling the moving traffic, and can help the runners run freely on the roads.

Maverick News in an extreme aberration would solicit the readers attention about an arcane trait of Mr. Brijen B. Desai, that he has been detected with “Parkinson Disease” two years ago. In an inspirational brazen message, he has reiterated, “through my efforts toward running the event, we would like to convey to many others humans suffering from Parkinson or other ailment that we together can overcome ailments and help each other to fight it out and help each other to grow. I would conclude Parkinson has Me, I don’t have Parkinson! (A way of expressing that PD is condition that affects the person but doesn’t define it)”.

Let the spirit of Mr. Brijen Desai helps the organisers to rejoice………

Following the Ultra-Marathon on 15^th. August, 2025, Mumbai Ultra Blood Donation Drive is scheduled across SIX (06) places in Mumbai; Greater Mumbai, and Navi Mumbai locations from 08.00 AM to 08.00 PM on 17^th. August, 2025. The places are:

Dadar: Shivaji Park; Near Kohinoor Square, Opposite Mayor’s Bungalow, Keluskar Road, Dadar West, Mumbai, Maharashtra – 400028.

Bandra (West): St. Andrew’s College, St. Dominic Road, Bandra (W) Mumbai,

Maharashtra – 400050.

Borivali (East): Raheja Old Club House; Raheja Estate, Kulupwadi, Borivali East, Mumbai, Maharashtra – 400066

Goregaon (West): Shaheed Smriti Krirangan; Mahesh Nagar, Goregaon West, Mumbai,

Maharashtra – 400104

Thane (West): EEH Runners;

Kharghar: ACTREC, Tata Memorial Centre; Sector 22, Utsav Chowk – CISF Rd, Owe Camp, Kharghar, Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra 410210.

Writer Suvro Sanyal

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