NMDC Hyderabad Marathon 2026 marks 15th Edition with several firsts

Hyderabad, August 30, 2026: The 15th edition of the NMDC Hyderabad Marathon 2026, powered by IDFC FIRST Bank, is held on Sunday with a record 32,000 registrations across the 5K, Inclusive Run, 10K, Half Marathon and Full Marathon categories, making it one of the largest running events in the country.
The main events — Full Marathon, Half Marathon and 10K Run — were conducted on Sunday, following the 5K and Inclusive Run held on Saturday.
Dr. M. Ramesh, IPS, Commissioner of Police, Cyberabad; Prashant Shinde, Zonal Head, IDFC FIRST Bank; Shri Krishna Kumar Thakur, Director (Personnel), NMDC; K. Shilpavalli, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Zonal Office; and Rajesh Vetcha, Founder, Hyderabad Runners Society and Race Director, NMDC Hyderabad Marathon 2026, jointly flagged off the Elite Runners and Full Marathon at People’s Plaza, Necklace Road.
The Half Marathon was flagged off at 5:30 a.m. from People’s Plaza by R. V. Karnan, Commissioner, GHMC, along with other dignitaries.
The 10K Run was flagged off at 7:15 a.m. from HITEX, Madhapur, by Dr. M. Ramesh, IPS; Laura Williams, Consul General of the United States; V. Vaidyanathan, MD & CEO, IDFC FIRST Bank; and representatives of the Hyderabad Runners Society.
Overall, 32,000 runners registered for the various categories. Around 11,000 runners participated in the Half and Full Marathons and Elite categories, while about 9,000 participated in the 10K Run on Sunday. On Saturday, 6,500 runners participated in the 5K and Inclusive Runs, including around 300 differently abled participants and 15 overseas and 30 Indian elite runners.
The Inclusive Run, introduced for the first time at the NMDC Hyderabad Marathon, was organised in association with the Adventures Beyond Barriers Foundation (ABBF). The initiative seeks to promote inclusive participation in distance running and reinforces the belief that running has no barriers and everyone deserves an opportunity to experience the joy of sport.
The 300 differently abled participants included 205 persons with disabilities, 37 wheelchair runners from the Telangana Wheelchair Cricket Team and Bengaluru Wheelchair Cricket Team and other; 14 dwarf participants from Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad, visually challenged runners and other participants with disabilities yesterday and quite a significant number participated in the Main event. 
The NMDC Hyderabad Marathon is regarded as the beginning of the marathon season in India and is among the country's largest marathon events.
The NMDC Hyderabad Marathon 2026 witnessed an impressive performance by elite runners from Ethiopia, Kenya and India.
In the Women’s Elite category, Ethiopia’s Emane Seifu emerged as the champion with a winning time of 2:46:29. Ethiopia’s Tsega Desta finished second in 2:46:57, while Kenya’s Teresiah Omosa secured third place in 2:47:17.
Among Indian women, Nirmaben Thakor was the leading Indian finisher with a timing of 2:50:20, followed by Bhagirathi Non (2:51:41), Meenakshi Negi (3:08:43), Maripally Uma (3:18:22) and Bhagwati Dangi (3:31:28).
In the Men’s Elite category, Ethiopia’s Seboka Negusse emerged as the champion with a winning time of 2:20:57. Kenya’s Felix Kimutai also clocked 2:20:57 to finish second, while compatriot Francis Cheruiyot secured third place in 2:21:29.
Among Indian men, Gopi Thonakal was the leading Indian finisher, securing fourth place overall in 2:21:46, followed by Man Singh (2:23:56), Pradeep Singh Chauhan (2:26:12), Ranjit Singh (2:27:49) and Bugatha Srinu (2:29:56).
The performances underlined the growing strength of Indian distance runners competing alongside an international elite field.
184 Tribal Youth from Chhattisgarh make their Marathon debut.  A special highlight of this year's marathon was the participation of 184 young tribal runners from Chhattisgarh, where NMDC operates its mining projects.
The runners were selected from villages and remote areas of Chhattisgarh and participated across different categories of the NMDC Hyderabad Marathon for the first time. Their participation provided an opportunity for young runners from tribal communities to experience a major national marathon and showcase their potential.
Speaking at the flag-off, Dr. M. Ramesh, IPS, Commissioner of Police, Cyberabad, said he had been associated with the Hyderabad Marathon in different capacities over the years — as a runner and mentor — and was happy to participate in this year's event as well.
He said the weather was ideal for the marathon and praised Hyderabad's vibrant running community and the city's growing focus on fitness and healthy living.
“Hyderabad has a very strong running community. Hyderabadis are health conscious and the city has also emerged as an events capital of India. Telangana is known for its hospitality. Nearly 2,000 police personnel participated in different categories of the marathon,” he said.
Speaking on the occasion, Shri Krishna Kumar Thakur, Director (Personnel), NMDC, said that the initiative had helped identify promising running talent among the tribal youth.
“We have found excellent running talent among the 184 tribal youth from the villages of Chhattisgarh. Some of them have already shown tremendous potential, with a few completing the Full Marathon in under 2 hours and 30 minutes. Through their participation, they have become ambassadors of good health. We hope to see many of them progress to higher levels of running from the next edition,” he said.
Awards were presented to the winners by Dr. M. Ramesh, Commissioner of Police, Cyberabad; Sunpreet Singh, Joint Commissioner of Police (Traffic), Cyberabad Commissionerate; Krishna Kumar Thakur, Director (Personnel), NMDC; Vivek Nishant Nath, Director (Commercial), NMDC; Anurag Kapil, Director (Finance), NMDC; Arun Kumar Kaliappan, President, Hyderabad Runners Society; and Rajesh Vetcha, Founder, HRS and Race Director, NMDC Hyderabad Marathon 2026.
The first-place winner received ₹3,00,000, while the second-place winner received ₹2,50,000 and the third-place winner received ₹2,00,000. The fourth, fifth and sixth positions received ₹1,50,000, ₹1,00,000 and ₹75,000, respectively.
Novartis Healthcare was recognised for recording the highest percentage of women participants in the marathon.
Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories was recognised for the highest number of registrations, with 1,000 employees/participants registering for the event.
Arcesium was recognised for its contribution of ₹30 lakh towards charity.
The NMDC Hyderabad Marathon supports 40 NGOs and has raised more than ₹2 crore towards various charitable organisations through the event.
The NMDC Hyderabad Marathon continues to strengthen its focus on environmental sustainability. The previous edition became India’s first marathon to receive the World Athletics Silver Sustainability Award, placing it among a select group of sustainable athletics events globally.
The Hyderabad Marathon now stands alongside internationally recognised events such as the Boston Marathon (USA), Generali Berliner Halbmarathon (Germany), Golden Gala (Italy), Wanda Diamond League Xiamen (China) and BAUHAUS-Galan (Sweden). The World Athletics sustainability recognition is valid for three years.
The organisers have set a goal of making the NMDC Hyderabad Marathon carbon neutral within the next three years. As part of the sustainability measures, 35% of runners opted out of receiving T-shirts, while the use of flex cut-outs was also reduced.
The NMDC Hyderabad Marathon has also been officially accredited by SheRACES, recognising its commitment to providing safer spaces, equal opportunities, better support and a more inclusive race experience for women runners.
The accreditation further strengthens the marathon's commitment to making distance running more accessible, safe and inclusive for everyone.