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Nothing is impossible for Kolkata runner Asif Iqbal
The Statesman Bhubaneswar
|January 19, 2025
It takes a lot of effort and courage to be a marathon runner.
It takes a lot of effort and courage to be a marathon runner. But there is something else that drives the adrenaline – passion. For a person with a disability (PWD), the determination to succeed is much more and the passion many notches higher.
Meet Kolkata-based Asif Iqbal, who is visually impaired and is all set to run the Tata Mumbai Marathon 2025 on Sunday.
An associate director with PricewaterhouseCoopers India, Asif aims to run a 42-km full marathon at the prestigious event. His buddy runners, who are seasoned runners, will be guiding him for directions and timing.
Asif ran his first half marathon in the Tata Mumbai Marathon 2023 and later in 2024.
With a passion to run, Asif says he has already practised once for the full marathon. He is an Asian record holder in the 25-km run, without holding hands.
This year he will be running his first full marathon with his two buddy runners who will help to achieve the target time. His target is to finish the marathon in 5 hours and 50 minutes, maintaining an 8:15 pace (km/hour) throughout the race.
This story is from the January 19, 2025 edition of The Statesman Bhubaneswar.
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