Starlight Strides 2021 – Women’s Night Run
Starlight Strides 2021 – Women’s Night Run was organized by Hyderabad Runners on 23rd October 2021 at University of Hyderabad
By Shrirang Kundle
Sometimes in order to break age old traditions which seldom make sense, we must do the right thing to set an example for future generation. Over 800+ women on Saturday did exactly that!
Starlight Strides 2021 – Women’s Night Run was organized by Hyderabad Runners on 23rd October 2021 at University of Hyderabad and IQ301 Sports timed the event. There were 3 categories:
1. 10k (timed)
2. 5k (timed)
3. 5K (untimed)
“Running under stars inside a beautiful campus when you can just leave your worries behind and just run was just ethereal and no one could’ve asked for a better environment!”
What’s to note about the event was the time, the race started at 7pm sharp, why is the time important you ask ? well we live in society were women generally don’t feel like going out during night due to various reason, but that changed during the night run, 800+ women participated in cohesion to empower themselves and reclaim their own safety.
Shout-out to University of Hyderabad for providing such a scenic venue. Start point had a big open air amphitheatre, various arrangements were made to make sure the run goes smooth. The security in the premises was air tight to make sure a safe and organic atmosphere for the runners to run. The route was well lit with lush green trees towering on both sides of the road.
800+ women runners alone was the testament of how important the message of the event was as they ran with determination, enthusiasm and zeal. Some were trying for top 3 positions, some were just running for fitness, some were running to achieve some personal goal but one goal among everyone one of them was common which was to finish the race and it was enthralling to see that everyone did finish their respective race.
A loop was set 2.5 km from the start point and 5K runners had to cross it once but the 10k runners had to cross that loop twice.
What was notable being some of the women runners who were close to their retirement age were participating in 10k event which gave a big morale booster to everyone, the message was “If they can do it…then so can we”.
Running under stars inside a beautiful campus when you can just leave your worries behind and just run was just ethereal and no one could’ve asked for a better environment!
The race itself went smoothly ! water stations were placed at strategic locations to aid the runners with water and nutrition. Bicycle marshals were provided for top 3 runners for 10K participants. Even though it was a 10K run but the results were photo finish where there was a difference of only few milliseconds between the top 2 position and it was a really close call.
Here are the list of winners in different categories :
Once again IQ301 sports technology timed the entire event accurately with no margin of error and the event was raging success. We as an organization believe in women empowerment and think that event such as these not only boost the morale but also sends the message, that women are free day or night to do whatever they want. If you’re reading this and planning to be part of such amazing running experiences, then look out for such event on our website from time to time. Hoping to see you in next run.