The answer is an emphatic NO! Two green city marathons in the country, which have embraced green initiatives since their inception, are one of the many inspirations closer home. IDBI Federal Spice Coast Marathon 2017 Organized by - Soles of Cochin Runners - 5500 Green Quotient - Minimal flyers, cloth goodie bags, only reusable cups for hydration, reusable ceramic plates and silverware at finish food, live food counters to eliminate packing. The only waste generated at race venue last year were about 30kgs of fruit peels/food waste and a 5kg bag of paper and other waste. Segregation is done at source in separate bags and handed over to Cochin Port Trust waste management for disposal. SCM also associates with Greenvein, an NGO which aims to plant a billion trees by 2020. Ramesh K of Soles of Kochi who himself is a popular amateur runner (and an eternal optimist!) says, ”I believe that runners care for the green component, although they may not prioritize that over their time/pace and other aspects of the running experience. At least they want a clean environment for their training runs, so it's only natural that they would appreciate to that carried over to races. A race being green is the responsibility and intent for all stakeholders - organizers, runners, sponsors, partners, civic administration, spectators.” On the concern about cleanliness of reusable cups, he said he would be concerned only if he has doubts about the credibility of the organizers. The quality of water, even if it is supplied in a paper cup, can be a concern. Any race management that cares about littering would care about the hygiene of the water (and cups) they supply. He would prefer to hydrate from aid stations instead of hand held bottles and could care less in what form the water was supplied, as long as he could quickly take a sip. Shriram Properties Bengaluru Marathon 2017 Organized by - NEB Sports Runners - 14500 Green Quotient - Only reusable cups for hydration on run route, reusable steel cutlery at finish, hot food, tea, coffee and fresh cut fruits to eliminate packing. Segregation is done at source by staff hired professionally for the event. Reeth Abraham, from the organizing team is a world class athlete and Arjuna Awardee. She spoke about NEB sports as an organization which cares about protecting the environment and reducing paper and plastic waste as much as possible, which is a big issue in most major cities. Almost all the runners participating in their runs are aware about their green initiative and totally support the cause. They do provide few bottles for fast or fussy runners. On how difficult it was to arrange hot food on steel cutlery for 10,000-15000 people, she says where there is a will, there's a way. They have good number of trained volunteers to manage their events. “All events should consider sustainability as a key enabler for conducting an event (that includes a marathon), because if it's a one-time wonder, it doesn't serve the purpose of spreading the message of distance running. The elements of sustainability include runner participation, sponsors, support of the local administration, police and local residents, media coverage etc. However, if the race has to be sustainable, it has to be remembered. And it has to be remembered in a good way. Runner experience, post-event cleanup, waste management, logistical machinery, volunteers - these should be of primary concern and importance to the race management.” - Ramesh K.