Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon 2026: Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta To Flag Off 21st Edition; Omar Abdullah, Service Chiefs Among Participants

Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon 2026: Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta will flag off the 21st edition of the Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon on Sunday, October 18, as more than 41,000 participants prepare to take part in Asia’s premier road race. The World Athletics Gold Label event will begin and finish at the iconic Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi, bringing together elite international athletes, leading Indian runners and amateur participants.

Deputy Chief Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma and Union Minister Kiren Rijiju will also attend the event, while Chief of Defence Staff General N. S. Raja Subramani and several senior military officials will grace the occasion. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah will return to run the Half Marathon, adding to the event’s high-profile line-up. The 2026 edition will feature a total prize purse of USD 275,732, with the men’s and women’s winners each set to receive USD 27,000.

Rekha Gupta To Flag Off Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon 2026

The event will be flagged off by Delhi Chief Minister Smt. Rekha Gupta. Deputy Chief Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma and Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Minority Affairs Kiren Rijiju will also attend the event.

The 2026 edition marks the 21st running of the Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon, which will bring together elite athletes, amateur runners, members of the armed forces and participants from across different sections of society.

The race will offer a total prize purse of USD 275,732. The men’s and women’s winners will each receive USD 27,000while an additional USD 12,000 event-record bonus will be awarded to any athlete who breaks the course record.

In the Indian Elite categories, the top three finishers in both the men’s and women’s races will receive:

• First place: INR 3,50,000

• Second place: INR 2,50,000

• Third place: INR 1,50,000

An additional incentive of INR 1,00,000 is available for setting a new Indian Elite record at the event.

Chief of Defence Staff, Service Chiefs And Omar Abdullah To Participate

Chief of Defence Staff General N. S. Raja Subramani, PVSM, AVSM, SM, VSM, will grace the 21st edition of the race.

Senior leaders from the armed forces and paramilitary organisations will also participate, continuing the event’s association with the country’s security forces. The notable participants include:

• Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh, PVSM, AVSM, Chief of the Air Staff

• Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, PVSM, AVSM, VSM, Chief of the Naval Staff

• Virendra Vats, Director General of the National Cadet Corps

• Praveen Kumar, IPS, Director General of the Border Security Force

Air Marshal Tejpal Singh, AVSM, VM, Deputy Chief of the Air Staff, will participate in the Open 10K. They will be joined by a large contingent of defence personnel competing across various race categories.

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah will also return to participate in the Half Marathon.

Adding an international sporting presence to the event, two-time Olympic champion Shaunae Miller-Uibo, the International Event Ambassador, will cheer on participants from the sidelines.

International Elite Field: Birhanu Legese And Irine Cheptai Lead Line-Ups

The international elite field is expected to produce a competitive contest in both the men’s and women’s races.

Ethiopia's Birhanu Legese will headline the men's field, alongside Kenyan runners Samwel Masai and Charles Mbatha Matata. Other international competitors include Samuel Mailu, Jamal Kiprono, Tesfaye Deriba, Stanley Waithaka, Dennis Kipruto, Daniel Sinda, Melaku Belachew, Charles Rotich, Kasu Tsegaye, Bereket Zeleke, Negasa Dekeba, Benson Kiplangat, Daniel Zewudu Bekel and Amanuel Teshome.

The men's pacers will be Ethiopia's Ayana Geneti and Kenya's Shadrack Kibiwot.

In the women’s race, Kenya’s Irine Cheptai, the 2022 Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon winner and a World Athletics Platinum Label athlete, will lead the field. She will face competition from compatriot Cynthia Jerotich Limo and Israel’s Lonah Chemtai Salpeter.

The international women's line-up also features Cynthia Chelangat Chepkw., Asmarech Anley, Wudinesh Alemu, Kiros Muaz, Caren Chebet, Selah Businei, Abera Hulageresh, Meselech Alemayehu, Maryam Lufti Njoki, Sewareg Makenosh Bihuen, andWawb.Silna

Kenya’s Emmanuel Kibet and Shadrack Kipkemboi will serve as women’s race pacers.

Indian Elite Athletes To Watch

The Indian Elite men’s race will feature Kiran Matre, who finished second among Indian Elite men last year. He will be joined by Dr Kartik Karkera, Mukesh Kumar and Panchanan Bera, among other leading domestic runners.

The full Indian Elite men’s line-up comprises:

• Kiran Matre

• Dr. Kartik Karkera

• Mukesh Kumar

• Shubham Sindhu

• Kalidas Hirave

• Pradeep Singh Chaudhary

• Panchanan Bera

• Rohit Rama

• Hemant Singh

• Sunil Kumar

• Dharmender

• Lovepreet Singh

• Rizwan Khan

• Prince Kumar

• Ajay Kumar

• Khundom Romajit Singh

• Gaurav Mathur

• Kresstarjune Pathaw

• Harendra Kumar

• Balkishan

• Shailesh Kushwaha

The Indian Elite women’s race will feature former champions Lili Das and Kavita Yadav, alongside Neeta Rani and world champion steeplechaser Ankita Dhyani.

The full Indian Elite women’s line-up comprises:

• Neeta Rani

• Lili Das

• Bharti

• Kavita Yadav

• Rima Patel

• Ankita Dhyani

• Aarti Pawara

• Anshika Lodhi

• Come Lamba

• Bhagirathi

• Chatru

• Ekta

• Saroj

• Sonam

• Ravina Gayakwad

• Nirmaben Thakor

• Sonic

• Sonia

• Shampa Gain

• Uma Maripally

Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon 2026: Race Categories And Timings

The event will feature several race categories, including the Half Marathon, Open 10K, Great Delhi Run, Corporate Run, Senior Citizens’ Run and Champions with Disability Run with Buddy.

Race day will begin with the elite Half Marathon fields, followed by amateur runners and participants across the other categories. The organisers expect more than 13,400 runners in the Amateur Half Marathon and Police Cup, over 10,000 in the Open 10K, and more than 13,300 in the Corporate Run and Great Delhi Run combined.

The race schedule for Sunday, October 18, is as follows:

• 5:18 a.m.: Elite Men’s Half Marathon

• 5:20 a.m.: Elite Women’s Half Marathon

• 5:30 a.m.: Amateur Half Marathon and Police Cup

• 6:30 a.m.: Champions with Disability Run and Senior Citizens’ Run

• 7:35 a.m.: Open 10K Run

• 9:00 a.m.: Corporate Run

• 9:05 a.m.: Great Delhi Run

More than 80 athletes are expected to feature in the elite Half Marathon races. The Champions with Disability Run and Senior Citizens’ Run are expected to attract more than 1,100 participants.

Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon 2026: Where To Watch Live

The race-day proceedings will be streamed live on the Procam International YouTube channel from 5:00 a.m. IST onwards.

The world feed will also be available on the official World Athletics YouTube channel.

Participants and spectators can follow the event’s elite races and community categories through the live coverage as the 21st edition of the Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon brings thousands of runners together in the national capital.

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