Shillong, July 21: The organisers of the Sohra Marathon faced a number of hurdles during the third edition of the race and were widely criticised by the participants.

From delayed and lost baggage, a false start in the half marathon to a lack of refreshments for runners, this year's event, which saw an increase of around 50 per cent participants from the past year, was not an organisational success.

Even four days after the race, the results of the 10km event are yet to be released.

In the other events, Tirtha Pun won the men's full marathon with a time of 2:38 hours, while Darishisha Iangjuh crossed the line to take first place in the women's event in 3:48 hours.

Krishan Kumar finished first in the men's half marathon with a time of 1:17.57 hours, while Mangali Tamang took top spot in the women's category in 13 more minutes.

The "wettest place on earth" certainly lived up to its tagline with heavy rain and winds testing the runners' mettle. However, the downhill route did provide some relief to the roughly 1,700 people, many of whom were from outside the state, across the three categories.

Following the race, the Sohra Marathon's Facebook page was inundated by negative reactions, although there were a few positive ones, while others commiserated with the challenges faced by the organisers, Run Meghalaya.

"There was some confusion at Sohra as buses carrying baggage were wrongly directed to another parking area and some participants took time getting their bags in the heavy rain, resulting in frustration and anxiety," Run Meghalaya's Gerald Pde said.