A UK-based Odia woman made heads turn when she ran a 42.5 km long marathon while wearing a Sambalpuri handloom saree
41-year-old Madhusmita Jena Das completed the UK's second-largest Manchester Marathon 2023 within 4 hours and 50 minutes. She achieved this feat while wearing a beautiful red saree and orange sneakers
A Twitter user shared photos of the event that shows Madhusmita Jena Das participating in the marathon along with other participants. Many on-lookers cheered her on as she ran past other runners
Watch the video of Madhusmita as she participated in Manchester Marathon in the UK
A Twitter user shared Madhusmita’s picture and wrote, “An Odia living in Manchester, UK, ran the UK’s second largest Manchester Marathon 2023 wearing a Sambalpuri Saree ! What a great gesture indeed. Loved her spirit, you have a distinct inclusive cultural identity that arises from the strong association of the tribal and folk communities which have been coexisting for centuries.”
The official Twitter handle of an NGO based in the UK for Indians also shared a picture and a video, wherein Madhumita can be seen during the marathon
One of the netizens wrote, “Nice, hopefully we can see people wearing patta saree playing US open, and wearing Tussar silk saree competing in triathlon someday.” Another one wrote, “Proud moment for Odia people.”
As per reports, Madhusmita has been participating in marathons and ultra-marathons across the globe, but this was the first time that she did so while wearing a saree
In January 2023, an 80-year-old woman defied all odds as she ran in Tata Mumbai Marathon while wearing a saree and a pair of sneakers. The woman named Bharati covered 4.2 km in 51 minutes