MANGALURU: As marathons and other races are getting postponed or cancelled, in a bid to keep the world moving, adidas 5k virtual race was held recently. Out of a total of 128K signups globally, 7853 were from India. Around 1.5 lakh athletes completed the race.
As part of this race, a user could participate from anywhere in the world and compete with runners across the globe. Each participating runner got featured on the adidas’ global leader board on the adidas app.
Ankita Gaur, Bengaluru Captain at adidas’ Runners Community told TOI, “With people still hesitant to visit gyms, many who switched to virtual sessions during the lockdown continue to do so. Athletes need motivation and look forward to attending events. This is a wonderful platform and beginners liked it,” she said, adding that virtual races could run parallel to the regular events in the future.
To help runners prepare, adidas supported runners with training plans and advice-based content across adidas’ digital channels, through the adidas runners community and athletes.
Nivedita Samanta, performance coach at adidas’ runners’ community said, “The ultimate high for runners is that feeling when the body is on the verge of giving up, but the mind is flying high, pulling them through towards the finish line.”