Today's kids are a smart lot

When I was thinking how am I going to spend my three hours (I finished the race at 7.45 a.m., the prize distribution was scheduled at 10.30 a.m.), Ashok Venugopal of the Indian Express joined me. He was covering the Chennai Marathon for the paper.

Even as he complained of poor media co-ordination, we heard a mother talking to the organisers of how their kids were asked to run again after completing 5 kms. Several complaints poured in.

Even as we were leaving the area, a group of kids all aged between 12 and 15, besieged us.

"Uncle, we have come all the way and the organisers are doing like this."
Ashok intervened, "You are all from which area." "Sowcarpet", they replied. One from the group retorted, "why ask that?" That kids repeated how they were misled by the organisers in taking the wrong route.

One another boy said he was winning the event for the last 2 years, but this time the organisers did not take note of who finished first or second. "I was training hard for the last few months. And this is what we get," he said.

The group of Sowcarpet kids kept going to all the TV reporters (Aaj Tak and DD) to say their side of the story.

Today's kids are a smart lot.