The second edition of Chandigarh Cyclothon witnessed participation of over 5,000 cycling enthusiasts ranging from children to adults in different rides here today.
The event, organised by Chandigarh administration as part of world tourism week celebrations with Sport 18 and Hero Cycles India as a main sponsors, was inaugurated by Adviser to the Chandigarh Administrator, K K Sharma alongwith O P Munjal, Chairman and Managing Director Hero Cycles Limited.
People from different age groups and diverse walks of life took part in the cycling events held under the aegis of Cycling Federation of India.
The first ride of the Cyclothon, the Elite National Cycling Race, had a track loop of 60 km and the total prize money for this race was Rs 5 lakh.
The race saw a close finish with Arvind Panwar from Delhi winning first place with 35 points and was awarded Rs 1 lakh.
Finishing a close second was T Rajesh from Tamil Nadu with 24 points with a prize of money of Rs 75,000. In the third place was Harpreet Singh, who took home Rs 40,000.
The different categories of races included 60 km national elite race, 20 km corporate ride, 10 km green ride, 20 km amateur ride and 5 km kids ride.
The event also saw participants from corporate firms like Vodafone, DLF and Infosys.
The initiative by Chandigarh Administration and Sport18 aims to promote Chandigarh as a clean and a green city with people motivated to adopt cycling as not only an exercise activity but also to promote cycling as a mode of transport, travelling short intra city distances amongst beautifully landscaped cycle tracks within the city.