Wearing a Sambalpuri handloom saree, a UK-based Odia woman left other runners in awe and made the people of Odisha proud by running a 42.5 km marathon at Manchester on April 16, as per The New Indian Express.??
Madhusmita Jena is 41 and she completed the marathon in 4 hours and 50 minutes. She is a high school teacher in Manchester and a member of the North West England Odia community.
She has participated in several marathons and ultra-marathons all over the world. But this is apparently the first time she did it wearing a saree.?
¡°I was the only person to run the marathon wearing a saree. Running for such an extended period of time is in itself an uphill task but doing so in a saree is even more difficult. But I am happy I was able to complete the entire distance in 4.50 hours,¡± she told The New Indian Express.?
¡°Many believe women cannot run wearing sarees but I proved them wrong by doing the task draped a Sambalpuri handloom. I anyway wear sarees during summers in the UK,¡± she added.?
Madhusmita's family hails from the village of Kusupur which is around 30 km away from Kendrapara.?
¡°Madhusmita was felicitated for sports excellence at the Odisha Society of the UK convention last year. She always inspires us with new feats but this time she went the extra mile by running in a saree. The entire Odia community of the UK is proud of her achievements,¡± said the trustee of UK Shree Jagannath Society and the former secretary of the Odisha Society of UK Sukant Kumar Sahu. ???