VIRUDHUNAGAR: While over 200 father-daughter pairs participated in the 10km marathon held on Sunday in Virudhunagar, owing to injuries caused by a recent accident, Senthilkumar, father of Class 6 student Varsha, could no longer continue the marathon five kilometres in. However, Varsha continued the race alone and crossed the finish line in 45 minutes. Notably, the father-daughter duo that won the marathon took longer to finish, around an hour. In recognition of Varsha's determination, she was given a consolation prize of Rs 5,000 along with a medal and a certificate.
The 10-kilometer marathon was jointly organised by the district administration and the social welfare and women empowerment department, for father-daughter pairs, under the 'Save the girl child, educate the Girl Child' campaign. Girls studying in Class 6 and above were allowed to participate in the event. "Varsha is currently in Class 6 at the Coronation Girls Higher Secondary School, Sivakasi, and her father is a mechanic," sources said.
Among the first three prize winners, the first and third position holders are government school students. "M Durga Devi, an eighth grader at the Government Higher Secondary School, Tenkasi, and her father Murugesan, placed first and won a cash prize of Rs 30,000. P Aruna, a second-year BA student from Rajapalayam, and her father Periyasamy, placed second, winning a cash prize of Rs 20,000. M Eshwari, a Class 10 student from the government school in Peria Perali, and her father Manimaran placed third in the marathon, winning a cash award of Rs 15,000," sources said. Moreover, consolation prizes (Rs 5,000) were given to five father-daughter pairs.