Paralympic Medalists Tatyana McFadden and Ernst van Dyk to Defend TCS New York City Marathon Titles

By Deepak Arora

NEW YORK, Sept 20: The best of the best wheelchair racers in the world will descend on New York City on Sunday, November 6, for the TCS New York City Marathon, including the USA’s 17-time Paralympic medalist Tatyana McFadden and South Africa’s eight-time Paralympic medalist Ernst van Dyk – both looking to defend their titles on the 26.2-mile course – announced Peter Ciaccia, president of events for New York Road Runners and race director of the TCS New York City Marathon.

McFadden, racing as an NYRR Team for Kids Ambassador, will go for her fourth consecutive and fifth overall title on the five-borough course, while van Dyk will go for his second consecutive and third overall title in a professional wheelchair athlete field that includes 25 Paralympians, seven of whom won a combined 19 medals – seven of those gold – at the Rio 2016 Games.

“We are very excited to have racing sensations Tatyana and Ernst return to defend their TCS New York City Marathon titles as part of an absolutely fantastic field,” said Ciaccia. “Our professional wheelchair athlete field truly represents the cream of the crop in para-sport this year, with many of these athletes coming off phenomenal, Paralympic-record breaking performances at the Rio 2016 Games. Having Tatyana also support and donate a racing chair to our newly launched NYRR Youth Wheelchair Racing program is a true testament to how she is inspiring the next generation as an NYRR Team for Kids Ambassador.”

McFadden, 27, of Clarksville, Maryland, is coming off a spectacular six-medal Paralympic performance in Rio, including gold medals in the 400, 800, 1500, and 5000-meter T54 events. It was the most medals for a U.S. track and field athlete at a single Paralympics since 1992. McFadden lowered the New York City Marathon event record last year by seven minutes and 20 seconds with a time of 1:43:04, which helped her complete an unprecedented third-straight Grand Slam sweep of the London, Boston, Chicago, and New York City marathons in a single year. Already this year, she has won both the Boston Marathon and London Marathon and finished second in the Paralympic Marathon to vault herself to the top of the Abbott World Marathon Majors Wheelchair standings with 66 points.

“I am so excited to return to New York City and race again as an NYRR Team for Kids Ambassador to help inspire the next generation of racing greats,” McFadden said. “Another TCS New York City Marathon title would be the perfect way to cap off what has been an amazing year, and to finish my season with a win in my home country would make it even sweeter.”

Fresh off her winning performances in Rio, McFadden will attend PS 333, Manhattan School for Children, on Tuesday, September 20 to help lead an NYRR Youth Wheelchair Racing Clinic and donate a racing chair to NYRR’s Youth Wheelchair Racing program. Twenty-five NYRR Mighty Milers – both able-bodied and disabled students – will take part in the clinic, which will highlight NYRR’s first-ever and free youth wheelchair program launched in early September. The program invites youth with a physical disability ages 7-21 to learn the fundamentals of wheelchair racing and try it out at Icahn Stadium in New York City. Schools, community centers, and organizations throughout New York City’s five boroughs are also encouraged to host NYRR Wheelchair Racing Clinics.

Van Dyk, 43, of South Africa, won the 2015 TCS New York City Marathon – by one second – in 1:30:54, the second-fastest time in event history. He is the two-time defending champion in the United Airlines NYC Half, having lowered the course record in 2015 to 48:54 before topping that this season with a time of 45:39. In addition to competing in the Rio 2016 Paralympic Marathon, he won gold at the Paralympics last week in handcycling. He has represented South Africa at every Paralympics since 1992 and has won the Boston Marathon a record 10 times, including six consecutive victories from 2001-2006.

“I’m really excited to be returning to New York City to defend my title,” van Dyk said. “New York City remains one of my favorite marathons because of the many ways in which the course challenges us as racers. The added twist of the Abbott World Marathon Majors this year makes it very exciting with all of us fighting for points as the series is nearing its conclusion.”

Fitbit Partners with New York Road Runners to Help Runners of All Levels Train Smarter and Achieve Their Goals at the TCS New York City Marathon

By Deepak Arora

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug 17: Fitbit, the leader in the connected health and fitness market, today announced a two-year partnership with New York Road Runners designed to provide runners of all levels with relevant data, inspiration and guidance to reach their goals at the TCS New York City Marathon.

The association between Fitbit, the first-ever official fitness tracker partner of the race, and the largest marathon in the world, extends beyond race day, encouraging runners to participate in enriching community-building activities and to use Fitbit’s platform of activity trackers and mobile tools to perform at their personal best.

“At Fitbit, we’re all about inspiring people to reach their health and fitness goals – whether that’s shaving a few minutes from a marathon personal best, or running in their very first race,” said Tim Rosa, VP of Global Marketing at Fitbit.

“By joining forces with the largest marathon in the world, we’re going to help even more people by giving them meaningful tools and motivation to do their best. Today’s news is just the beginning as we work to deepen our partnership with the New York Road Runners organization.”

“We are excited to welcome Fitbit as a partner of New York Road Runners, and the official fitness tracker for the TCS New York City Marathon,” said Sarah Cummins, head of business development and strategic partnerships at New York Road Runners. “Fitbit’s track record of helping people lead healthier more active lives makes them a great new partner to our community. With Fitbit’s help, we’ll further carry out our mission of helping and inspiring people through running.”

Fitbit presents a rare opportunity to train like Fitbit Ambassador Ryan Hall. As the current American record holder in the Half Marathon and Marathon, Hall created a unique 10-week plan for advanced runners who are training regularly based on his extraordinary experience and vast knowledge of the sport. The plans contain daily tips and guidance to help them prepare for the race and are available for download on Fitbit’s website.

“Based on my own training experiences and methods, I’ve designed a plan for runners that will help them train strong and feel great heading into the marathon,” said Hall, elite runner and Fitbit Ambassador. “Proper training includes keeping track of way more than just distance, pace and heart rate. Nutrition, hydration and sleep are also incredibly important in promoting proper muscle recovery and preventing injury – these are all things Fitbit enables that you can track with your Fitbit device to train smarter as you get ready for the starting line in New York City.”

Haryana appoints Sakshi Beti Bachao ambassador

NEW DELHI, Aug 24: Rio Olympics bronze medallist Sakshi Malik came home to a grand reception on Wednesday morning in New Delhi. She is the first Indian woman to win an Olympic medal in wrestling.

The wrestler was received by a contingent of ministers from the Haryana government at the Capital's Indira Gandhi International Airport. Haryana's sports and youth affairs minister Anil Vij, who was present in Rio as head of the state delegation, accompanied the star wrestler on the return flight.

"It was my dream and hard work of years," said Sakshi after landing in the country. "Since long I had thought of going to the Olympics to win a medal for the country. It finally happened in Rio."

She also thanked wrestlers Geeta Phogat, Sushil Kumar and Yogeshwar Dutt for their contribution to her success. "It was inspiring when Geeta Phogat qualified for wrestling as she was the first Indian woman to qualify for Olympics. It lit a hope that if one weight category can qualify, there can be more. She also has a role to play in my victory," Sakshi said.

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, while felicitating her in Bahadurgarh, also announced that she will be the face of the 'Beti Bacaho, Beti Padhao' campaign in the state.

PV Sindhu, Sakshi Malik, Dipa Karmakar and Jitu Rai to get Khel Ratna

NEW DELHI, Aug 23: The sports ministry announced on Monday that Rio Olympics medallists -- shuttler PV Sindhu and wrestler Sakshi Malik -- will receive the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award along with gymnast Dipa Karmakar and shooter Jitu Rai.

While shuttler Sindhu created history by becoming the first female athlete from India to win a silver in the just-concluded Rio Olympics, Sakshi bagged a bronze in the 58kg female wrestling.

Dipa, India’s first female gymnast to qualify for Olympics, went on to miss a bronze by 0.15 points but her clean finish in the high-risk Produnova vault won the hearts of the nation, while Jitu bagged over half a dozen medals in the past two years, including gold at Asiad and Commonwealth Games and a silver in World Championships, which booked his ticket to Rio.

Besides, the ministry also selected 15 athletes for this year’s Arjuna Award. The notable names in the list are boxer Shiva Thapa, long distance runner Lalita Babar, cricketer Ajinkya Rahane, hockey players VR Raghunath and Rani Rampal among others.

This year’s Dronacharya Award has been conferred upon six coaches, the most notable among being Dipa’s coach Bishweshwar Nandi and India Test team captain Virat Kohli’s mentor Raj Kumar Sharma.

Besides Nandi, others who will honoured with the Dhronacharya Award are Nagapuri Ramesh (athletics), Sagar Mal Dhayal (boxing), Pradeep Kumar (swimming, lifetime) and Mahabir Singh (wrestling, lifetime).

The Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award will be given to Satti Geetha (athletics), Sylvanus Dung Dung (hockey) and Rajendra Pralhad Shelke (rowing).

Besides, the Punjabi University of Patiala will be awarded the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (MAKA) Trophy 2015-16.

The National Sports Awards are given every year to recognise and reward excellence in sports.

The Khel Ratna Award is given for spectacular and most outstanding performance in the field of sports by a sportsperson over a period of four years. Apart from a medal and a citation, the Khel Ratna Awardee will receive a cash prize of Rs 7.5 lakh.

The Arjuna Award is given for consistent performance over four years, while the Dronacharya Award is given to coaches for producing medal winners at prestigious international sports events and the Dhyan Chand Award for lifetime contribution to sports development.

Arjuna, Dronacharya and Dhyan Chand Awardees will receive statuettes, certificates and cash prize of Rs 5 lakh each.

The recipients of Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar will be given trophies and certificates. Overall top performing university in inter-university tournaments will be given MAKA Trophy, award money of Rs 10 lakh and certificates.