Jamshedpur: On the occasion of JRD Tata’s 100th birth anniversary, the 4th All India JRD Tata Invitational Half Marathon 2004 was conducted at the JRD Tata Sports Complex in Jamshedpur.

The event saw over 175 professional athletes and amateur enthusiasts all limbering up at the starting line at the beginning of the race. The test of endurance was too much for many amateurs, who left the track clear for the professionals too fight it out.

Mukesh Kr. Yadav of Uttar Pradesh stood first with a time of 1:08.30 sec and Bhairo Singh Lone of RSCB clocked 1:08:34 sec to bag second. The first prize was a trophy and cash award of Rs 75,000/-, while the second prize had a cash award of Rs 35,000/- and a trophy.

Ms L. Aruna Devi clocked first in the women’s event with a time of 1:21:17 sec and was closely followed by Ms Hidangmayum Sangini Dev with a time of 1:22:34 sec. Both athletes were from Manipur, and were awarded trophies and cash prizes of Rs 30,000/- and Rs 17,500/- respectively.

The visiting athletes, were taken around the newly inaugurated Tata Athletic Academy, the first of its kind in the country. The academy has been set up by Tata Steel in response to its commitment to upholding the values of Corporate Social Responsibility instilled by JRD Tata into the very fabric of the organisation. The academy has been set up in association with Athletic Federation of India, to cater to the vast potential available in the country for this event and with the aim of achieving success at the Olympic Games.

The event was organised and sponsored by the Sports Department of  Tata Steel.