New Delhi, Jan. 30 -- Until January 2025, Kartik Karkera had never attempted a marathon. Middle distance had caught his interest since he had first taken to running. His reason to run the MVP Marathon in Nashik, Maharashtra, came from a need, followed by a proposition-if he won the race, the medical institution he was employed at was ready to grant him leave to train for the National Games in Uttarakhand in February of that year.

"I was mostly running 1,500m races at the time, though I've always liked to explore distances. The decision to sign up for a full marathon was spontaneous," Karkera, 28, recalls. Winning on his marathon debut was one thing; Karkera got the course record as well (2 hours, 20 minutes). And if critics wrote it off ...