India shines abroad

Indian triathletes and Army personnel, L Biten Singh and Raghunath Mali, recently made the country proud by winning at the Ironman 70.3 Championship in Bintan, Indonesia. Singh and Mali, performed incredibly well in their categories 

(M: 25-29 years) and (M: 18-24 years), respectively, and qualified for the Ironman 70.3 World Championship which will take place in Taupo, New Zealand, in 2020. In an interactive session with Sakal Times, they give us an insight into Ironman 70.3 Championship and tell us more about their preparations for the world championship next year. 

Mali, who hails from Sangli, Maharashtra, started training for triathlons at Balewadi Stadium, Pune, in 2010. In 2016, he got selected for the Indian Army, post which he did not stop his triathlon practice. 

Singh, originally from Manipur, has always been a sports enthusiast. He joined the Army in 2010 where he got the chance to participate in triathlons at the National level and even won several times. However, this was the first time that both the triathletes participated in Ironman 70.3 Championship. “To participate in such events, not only one has to put in tremendous effort but a huge amount of funds too. Besides, Indian Army personnel have to seek permission from the government to fly abroad,” says Mali. 

Ironman 70.3 Championship is a triathlon where the sum of distance of all the three sports: swimming (1.9 km), cycling (90 km) and running (21.1 km) is 70.3 miles (113 km). Singh stood first in his category and eighth overall, completing the triathlon in 4 hours 38 minutes whereas Mali ranked first in his category and 38th overall, finishing the championship in 4 hours 54 minutes. They both got selected for Ironman 70.3 World Championship. 

Bombay Engineer Group (BEG), a regiment of Engineers of Indian Army, extended admirable support and facilities to the athletes. Both Singh and Mali were trained under the watchful eye of expert coach Subedar Sunil B Bhise who says, “We train very hard with Sports Science and have been greatly motivated by the BEG Commandant and Sports Officers.”

Along with BEG, Pune-based Recreational Triathletes Group also helped encourage the duo by providing them high-end triathlon equipment, including tri-bike, new wheel sets, custom tri-suits, so that they could compete at the international level. “They also provided us nutrition and logistical support for the entire training period,” says Singh.

Sharing their experience of competing at the international level, Mali says, “Competing with so many people and winning was really exciting, though the weather conditions didn’t favour us. Getting trained in a city like Pune during rainy season is way different from competing in a country where the climate is altogether different, no matter how much effort one puts in.”

During practice, they would finish cycling in around 2 hours 15 minutes. However, it took them around 2 hours 30 minutes for the same distance in Bintan. The same was with running and swimming.

Getting selected for the championship was not easy. They had to compete with fellow athletes and pass the trial to participate in Ironman 70.3 Championship. There were 20 people in total for the trial from across the nation, including Army personnel and civilians, who were given 4 hours 25 minutes to complete all the three sports. Both Mali and Singh completed before the given time and got selected.

Singh says that he had not thought of competing at such a big platform. This is the very first time that the triathletes got an opportunity to perform beyond what they have been doing, and test themselves. “Earlier, the goals were to finish the triathlon, but this time we participated to win and not just cross the finish line,” says Singh.

Now, the duo is practising hard to compete at the next level. They’ve not only made India proud but have also raised the bar for themselves. Mali says that he feels the pressure of outperforming himself the next time and Singh agrees with him (laughingly). 

They say that other countries can afford state-of-the-art equipment whereas we don’t have that level of updated machinery. Practising on an advanced level cycle and on a medium range racing cycle makes a huge difference. “But that doesn’t mean we stop practising or competing. We fail when we quit,” says Singh.To prepare for the world championship, Bhise has designed different programmes for them.

Even though they won gold medals in their respective criteria, there were many takeaways from the championship. They understood how weather conditions can play a major role in the performance, how to save energy till the last sport and, most importantly, what new training should they add to their practice. Giving an example, Mali says that they practised swimming in the pool whereas in the competition they had to compete in open water. Now, they are implementing everything they have learnt from the championship.

Motivating other athletes, Singh suggests, “Reach before time, observe and understand the surroundings and the weather, and try to fit in accordingly. Maintain the pace, as you would want to save the energy till the end of the triathlon.” Mali adds, “Don’t get disheartened if you don’t succeed at the first attempt, keep trying and one day you’ll definitely achieve what you deserve.”