VMPL
Satara (Maharashtra) [India], September 7: The milestone 15th edition of the Punit Balan Group Satara Hill Half Marathon powered by TechnoSport 2026 (PBG SHHM) saw 7,972 runners take on Satara’s iconic 21.1 km hill course, with 7,716 finishers completing the race across different age categories.
Organised by the Satara Runners Foundation, the event brought together runners from across India under the 2026 theme #PaceForPeace, celebrating the spirit of running, community participation and Satara’s distinctive hill route.
The Open Category saw strong performances across both men’s and women’s races.
Open Men: Pravin Kamble won with a timing of 01:10:00, followed by Abhishek Kamanna Devkate at 01:11:13 and Kalidas Laxman Hirave at 01:11:42.
Open Women: Rani Sadashiv Muchandi secured first place with 01:30:53, followed by Nisha Anand Paswan at 01:36:44 and Santoshi Mahadev Narale at 01:37:25.
The 2026 edition also officially attempted the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ title for Most People in a Mountain Run – Single Mountain, with over 7,900 eligible participants forming part of the official attempt. The outcome will be communicated following the prescribed verification process.
Among those present on Race Day were Shri Santosh Patil, IAS, Collector & District Magistrate, Satara; Shri Ranjan Kumar Sharma, IPS, Special Inspector General of Police, Kolhapur Range; Shri Nikhil Nandkumar Pingale, IPS, Superintendent of Police, Satara; Harish Patne; Mr. Rajesh Rane, representing Punit Balan Group; Mr. Sandeep Jhunjhunwala, Director, TechnoSport; Mr. Anirudh Pratap Singh, Head R&D, TechnoSport; Ryohei Fukuyama San, Finance Director & Sreeya Shetty San, Brand Communication Manager Sports, Otsuka Nutraceutical India (Pocari Sweat), Mr. Ganesh Bhagwat, Zandu; RJ Salil, VP Programming, RJ Akash from Goa and Mr. Naveen Toshan from BIG FM; Syed Ahmer Hussain, National Business Head Video Banking & Corporate Sales, AU Small Finance Bank; and Pankaj Gadekar, Regional Head Branch Banking, ROMG Region, Swadesh Banking.
The race weekend also featured the PBG SHHM Fitness Expo on 4 and 5 September, with over 50 brands and exhibitors across fitness, sports, nutrition, wellness and lifestyle.
Ar. Upendra Pandit, President, Satara Runners Foundation, thanked the runners, volunteers, administration, partners and the people of Satara for making the milestone edition memorable.
Dr Avinash Shinde, Race Director, highlighted months of planning across route management, medical support, hydration, pacing, timing, and traffic management that went into delivering a safe, runner-friendly race.
Dr Sandeep Kate, Founder and Chief Believer, Satara Runners Foundation, credited the city, runners, volunteers and partners for helping the event grow from a local initiative into a nationally recognised race.
Mr Punit Balan, Director, Punit Balan Group, expressed pride in supporting the milestone edition and strengthening PBG SHHM’s presence as a platform for sport and fitness.
Mr. Sandeep Jhunjhunwala, Director, TechnoSport, highlighted the brand’s engagement with runners and the performance of its FeatherLite™ fabric in Satara’s demanding race conditions.
The event was presented by Punit Balan Group, with TechnoSport as the Powered By and T-shirt Sponsor, AU Small Finance Bank as the Banking Partner, Zandu as the Pain Relief Sponsor, Pocari Sweat as the Hydration Partner and BIG FM as the Radio Partner.
For event information and results, visit www.runsatara.com.
(ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by VMPL. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same.)
