SBI Pinkathon

SBI Pinkathon, India’s biggest women’s run is coming to Mumbai for the third consecutive year on Sunday, December 14, 2014. Online registrations are open at www.pinkathon.in for the 3km, 5km& 10km multi-category run. United Sisters Foundation & Maximus Events along with Super model, actor, fitness enthusiast, avid barefoot runner and Pinkathon founder Milind Soman formally announced the launch of this year’s SBI Mumbai Pinkathon at a press conference in Asilo.

Present at the conference were eminent dignitaries like Actor Bipasha Basu, Vinod Pande, GM Corporate Communiation & Change, SBI and Ms. Deveika Bhojwani. The focus of the international running event is to encourage an active lifestyle and overall fitness for women and create much needed awareness about breast cancer.

SBI Pinkathon has so far been held across the country in Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Ahmedabad & Pune. The multi-city national event has received an overwhelming expression of support with 15,000 women of all ages, across all walks of life participating in Amdavad alone. Delhi Pinkathon had 7000 women participants; and the recently concluded run in Pune witnessed over 6000 women runners. This year SBI Mumbai Pinkathon is expected to cross 10000 participants. SBI Pinkathon had a varied number of participants from an 18 month old girl to a 79 years old lady, a squad of visually impaired girls and a cancer survivors’ squad. Similarly the Mumbai edition will also witness a squad of visually impaired girls and under privileged girls participating, thus establishing itself as a platform breaking all boundaries be it age, geographies, abilities etc.

The run has received tremendous support in Mumbai from various celebrities in the past like Lisa Haydon, Karisma Kapoor and Bipasha Basu who have gone all out to promote the cause. Former beauty queen-turned-actress and avid fitness enthusiast Gul Panag was the brand ambassador last year.
Announcing the launch of SBI Mumbai Pinkathon, Milind Soman said, “Pinkathon is beyond a marathon. It is a run for a noble cause connecting people across segments. It has become a national movement. Mumbai and Mumbaikars have come in large numbers and supported us throughout our journey. We look forward to their support once again and hope to set a new high in the city. Together we will do more and I believe we can help make pink just a colour again.”

Milind Soman also highlighted the concept of Pinkathon Ambassadors in every city who are passionate, extraordinary, committed men & women connecting for one cause, health for every woman. Each Pinkathon Ambassador is a part of the Pinkathon core team and registers all the women in their circle of influence. With the tag line Each One Kheench One, Pinkathon inspires everyone that Together, we will do more. Various initiatives are undertaken by the Pinkathon Ambassadors to connect with women across the strata of society such as Har Ghar mein Pinkathon where training runs are conducted to include first time women runners across different locations in Mumbai from Navi Mumbai to Navy Nagar and from Goregaon to Chembur. Pinkathon Goes to School is another interesting concept to encourage Mother-daughter teams to run together. The idea is to encourage health & fitness at a very young age.

Renowned actress and fitness icon, Bipasha Basu said, “It’s a pleasure to be associated with Pinkathon for consecutively 3 years now. I feel that Pinkathon is an important platform that encourages women to come out of their shell and talk about their fight with cancer. It gives them a chance to show the world how tough they are to stand against all odds and truly be winners. I wish Milind all the success in this noble endeavour and urge the women of Mumbai to participate in huge numbers."

 Vinod Pande, GM, Corporate Communication and Change, SBI said, “We, at State Bank of India, are proud to be a partner in this great initiative for women called the SBI Pinkathon, that aims to spread awareness about breast cancer and promote women's well being. It is a run for women, of women, by women. Running is an incredibly effective way of making a healthier and smarter you. It helps you balance your weight, prevent disease, enhance your mood and boost your confidence. SBI Pinkathon is one event which will help you achieve all that. State Bank of India appeals to all women in Mumbai to be a part of this wonderful cause. SBI also appeals to all men in Mumbai to ensure that their loved ones participate in the SBI Pinkathon. We need your wholehearted support. Hope to see you there!”

Mr. Sandeep Prakash, Regional Head - West, Amway India said, “I am glad to see such high level of participation for an event like Pinkathon as it will help in promoting awareness of fitness & health among women. Today’s hectic & sedentary lifestyle, stress, pollution etc. is taking a toll on our body. Creating awareness about the fact that healthy people need supplements is critical. Pinkathon is a beautiful concept to promote optimal health and it clearly aligns with Nutrilite’ s, Amway’s power brand, philosophy of helping people live a healthy life.”
Deveika Bhojwani, Vice President Women’s Cancer Initiative-Tata Memorial Hospital said, “Having worked towards the cause of breast cancer awareness for several years, I firmly believe that Indian women need to realize how important it is to understand the ailment and its risks. In addition, it is crucial to get yourself checked, spread the word on a personal basis, and adopt fitness as a way of life.”

Pegged at being the deadliest cancer in women in the country, it is estimated that 1 in 22 Indian women have the lifetime probability of developing breast cancer and the number of new breast cancer cases is expected to rise to 250,000 new cases per year by 2015. Pinkathon is a unique initiative that encourages women to incorporate a fitness programme into their daily lives by promoting simple activities like walking and running.
Reema Sanghavi, Managing Director, Maximus MICE & Media Solutions Pvt. Ltd and Co-founder Pinkathon said, “Running addresses most of the top 10 ways to help prevent breast cancer, not only promoting well-being but also raising immunity levels and improving health to help fight diseases like cancer. Maximus is proud of Pinkathon as our leading Intellectual Property working towards a noble cause.”

Harshula Tulapurkar, Cancer Survivor, Mumbai Pinkathon Mascot, “I think the real purpose of Pinkathon is to reach out to all the women who unfortunately have suffered from breast cancer and to give them the confidence that THEY MAY HAVE BEEN HAPLESS BUT NOT HELPLESS. The psychological stress is more because it has to do with her womanhood. STOP FEELING GUILTY. Initiatives like these will help them get rid of unspoken fears and the change the mindset of the society who perceives it as social stigma.”
 
Ms. Harshula Tulapurkar, Cancer Survivor and RJ Sangeet from Radio Mirchi were announced as the mascots for the 5 km and 10 km category respectively. Both will be presented with the first bibs along with running shoes. They are being currently trained to run the 5 km & 10 km distances.

All proceeds raised from the event will be used for the expenses incurred in organizing and marketing the event, and by the Women's Cancer Initiative in its fight against breast cancer. All participants will get a free cancer screening. There is a special registration fee of Rs. 300 per participant for educational institutions and for the participating NGOs it is absolutely free.