Profiles – Running and Beyond

Humans of Marathon – Latha Srinivasan

Sometime after the age of fifty, there comes a moment called as retirement which brings curtains down on most lives. On many occasions, not doing anything is most sought out. There are a few who go on to defy the convention and lead the way for the rest.

By the age of fifty-eight, Latha Srinivasan had accomplished almost everything that one would expected from her – a corporate career with Unit Trust of India, bringing up two sons, caring for the aged in the family, becoming a grandmother, and a settled retired life at Coimbatore. However, she was not ready to call it quit. A trained dancer in Bharatnatyam, Mohiniattam, and Kuchipudi in her younger days, she was always eager to learn something new throughout her life, mostly in the field of arts. During the months of July and August 2018, she was reading articles in Metro Plus about the upcoming Coimbatore Marathon and thought to herself if she can give it a chance.

She joined her neighbourhood running club, the Sai Baba Colony chapter of the Coimbatore Runners and introduced herself into running. She was immediately attracted to the warm welcome of the fellow runners who seemed to believe in her almost instantaneously. Her first run was a marathon in itself – a cautious start, gasping for breadth after running few metres, and very soon, she started having second thoughts on whether she is right to pursue this. All her fears were soon dissuaded by the encouraging words from Karthikeyan Padmanabhan, co-founder of Coimbatore runners, “If you can train well for the next two months regularly, you can do the 10 Km run.” Over the next two months, mornings were never the same as it was a new routine with new friends, and the discovering the runner in her. She went on to finish the 10K Run at the Coimbatore Marathon in 01:40:41, in less than two months of starting to run.

Buoyed by the strong finish, she confidently registered for the Half-marathon at Cochin along with few of her friends. The half-marathon was tougher than what she expected. With weather conditions not as favourable as Coimbatore, it poised plenty of challenges and she managed to finish it in 03:36:46. What surprised her though was the recognition of a second place in her age category. “It was a telling moment that I too am a runner” says Latha on her pivotal moment.

In January this year, she started training under coach Narayanan who helped her with strengthening her muscles and improving her speed. During the months of April-August, she challenged herself to do the 100 Days of Running and accomplished it by running the maximum distance among women in Coimbatore, who took up the challenge. In the course of the 100 days, she also clocked an impressive time of 2:42:57 for the half-marathon distance at an event in Bangalore. It was then she thought to herself that she should challenge the distance of full marathon. For inspiration and guidance, there was Venkatesan Rangaswami, who ran his first marathon at an age of seventy one. “His relentless commitment towards running a full marathon inspired me to give it a try.”

She set her sights on the Spice Coast marathon to be held on December 1, 2019 and started training towards the event. Rain or shine, she ensured that she met her training calendar religiously. The heavy rains on the day before the event increased the humidity levels during the race. She was cautious about it and conserved her energy for a strong finish in a time of 06:11:43. The presence of her husband, sons, and not to miss her fellow runners, who have been waiting for more than 2 hours after their event, at the finish line, made the finish memorable for more than one reason. It was not only the end of marathon but a journey of transformation into an athlete.

Winning prizes or accolades was never her objective to take up running. When told about Masters Athletics events, she first hesitated to participate as she was not keen on competing. However, it was the simple pleasure being recognised as an athlete and running alongside many other stalwarts that prompted her to participate in the events. She participated in the 5000m event and finished it impressively at 32 minutes winning the first prize in her age group!

She has since won three gold medals in the district-level competitions and two medals in the state-level competitions. She is also excited about the opportunity to represent Tamil Nadu in the national athletics meet to be held in Manipur in February 2020.

On looking back, she retains her humility by saying, “all that I wanted for myself is to be physically fit enough to do my daily chores and not be dependent on others. I am certainly glad about the friends across different ages, that I have made during this time.” She also credits her family for their wonderful support. Although the running bug hasn’t yet caught up with them, their support has been immense. Her son gifted her a Garmin watch and got her into the world of gadgets and meticulous data keeping of her runs. Running has certainly added a new dimension to her life and she sets her sights higher next year by wanting to travel around India for marathons in other cities, and possibly outside of it very sooner. As George Bernard Shaw once said,

We do not stop playing because we grow old: we grow old because we stop playing.

An edited version of the article was published in The Hindu – Metroplus on December 17, 2019 along with Haripriya’s experience of running her first marathon – https://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/fitness/latha-srinivasan-and-haripriya-r-from-coimbatore-complete-their-first-full-marathon/article30318112.ece

Coimbatore Randonneurs

Talk about France and cycling, the first thoughts that comes to one’s mind is the prestigious Tour de France. Equally popular though is the Paris-Brest-Paris (PBP) Randonneur event, which unlike the Tour de France, is open to amateurs across the world. Started in 1891, older than Tour de France, the next edition of the quadrennial event is scheduled to be held on August 18-22 , 2019. Unlike Tour de France, a multi-stage event, PBP is a single stage event where riders cover a distance of 1200 Km at a stretch. Riders are expected to complete the distance within 90 hours with stringent cut-offs in the intermediate segments, like 600 Km in 40 hours. To qualify for the event, riders have to complete a series of brevet rides, organised across the world under the regulations of Audax Club Parisien, the organisers of PBP. The brevet rides are long distance cycling events starting from 200 Km onwards, with time limits. The PBP is actively participated by riders all over the world and in the 2015 edition, about 57% of the 5,311 participants resided outside France. This year’s edition sees participation of over 300 riders from India, of which four of them are from Coimbatore.

1. Chakkravarthy Birur, 51 years

Chakkravarthy, popularly known as Chakra, was a pentathlon athlete during his college days before getting sucked into his business and family life. He started riding in 2012 to keep himself fit and has not looked back since. He attempted his first brevet in Chennai in 2012 and was instrumental in bringing the brevet events to Coimbatore. He finished the arduous 1000 Km ride between Chennai and Vijayawada in 2014 helping him qualify for the 2015 edition of the PBP. After quitting the 2015 event midway due to mechanical failure in his cycle, he is more determined to complete the current edition. He is also a triathlete and looking forward to finish his first half-Iron man event later this year.

2. Siva Balaji, 36 years
Siva Balaji, a production engineer by profession, had his interest rekindled in cycling in 2017 and was addicted to it since. He started riding the brevets and started scaling up from 200 km to 1000km, not just once but five times, within the next two years across South India. The longest brevet that he has undertaken is the 1200 Km early this year stretching over 4 days. He occasionally participates in competitive cycling and has won prizes in time trail events and finished third in the Western valley MTB challenge.

3. Sakthivel Manian, 36 years
Sakthivel Manian, an IT professional, started cycling in 2015 only as a means to keep himself fit during his hectic work schedule. He credits his friend Gokul Raju for getting him to take up cycling for fitness and participating in various events. It soon become a passion and unsurprisingly, he got hooked to brevets. He started riding brevets with Coimbatore Cycling and presence of his friends in the group are constant source of motivation.

4. Dr. Achyutha Krishnan, 29 years
Hailing from a family of doctors, Achu took up to cycling during his post graduation in Medicine, when he started riding with his friends at the We the Chennai Cycling Group (WCCG). A juvenile diabetic, cycling helped him to test his limits and the way beyond it. Since the beginning of this year, he has clocked over 10,000 Km in his bicycle across the South India. Being a native Coimbatorean, it goes without saying that he enjoys climbing hills on his bicycle.

The common thread that runs across these 4 riders is their passion for riding and the amateur spirit in them. They took up to cycling with minimal background in sports and it is the sheer persistence that has taken them to these heights. Their technical abilities and age may not help them participate in the professional events but their determination sees them through in amateur events.

A quick calculation would suggest that brevet require riding at only about 15 Km per hour, which doesn’t sound difficult when viewed with layman’s glasses. The real challenge lies in enduring the distance and finishing within the time specified. During the given time, one has to manage their sleep, food, mechanical failures, and other unforeseen incidents on the route. The brevets are largely self-supported and one has to plan their routines themselves. Further, the route include significant increase in elevation and drop adding to the complexities. The total elevation for this year’s PBP route is about 11,566m, well above Mt. Everest.
One of the key strategies in cycling event is to stick with the peloton – a group of riders. This helps all the riders to help each other and go the maximum distance with minimum effort. In PBP, this would be difficult to implement as over 90 hours, as they need to match not only their riding speed but also their scheduled and unscheduled breaks. They do ride with different groups at different points of time but the finishing the event ultimately relies on individual pursuit.

An edited version of this article appeared in The Hindu – Metroplus on August 17, 2019 under the title “Going the Distance (1200 Km)”

https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Coimbatore/four-amateur-cyclists-from-coimbatore-will-pedal-off-at-the-paris-brest-paris-randonneur/article29110838.ece

Humans of Marathon – Raja Marthandan

Running has introduced me to myriads of people, to whom I would remain forever indebted for the treasures of wisdom that they parted with me, in thought, word and deed. One such person was Raja Marthandan, who at the first sight wasn’t someone I would have looked up to.

In 2010, I was volunteering for the Auroville Marathon 2011 when he appeared in our office. He had come all the way from Chennai and his dreary look certainly didn’t give an impression of someone remotely interested in the event. I nonchalantly handed over a Tamil application form, the only reason being that the form was on my desk unused. He did not possess any mail id or even a phone number, and his other queries made me sceptical about the seriousness of him participating in the event. I was hesitant to take the money for I was not sure if he would really turn up. I further tried to dissuade him by letting him know that the event doesn’t carry any prize money and we communicate only through e-mails.

On the day before event, he appeared late in the evening which only increased by scepticism. I handed his running bib and wished him good luck. He asked me if I can help him with a place to stay that night. Auroville does not have enough ‘affordable’ places for stay and during that year, we stopped arranging for dormitories. Since, I was running the following day, I tried to escape from the scene, and looked up to Anand (as I used to do in times of difficulty!) to handle him. Anand, as ingenious as ever, suggested that he can sleep at the bib distribution centre and take care of our belongings. Despite the ‘poor stay arrangements’, he went on to surprise us the following day by finishing the marathon in 4:20 and thanked us profusely for the help! (For records, I finished the marathon in 4:58).

A year later, he appeared again to register for the 2012 edition of the event. Needless to say, we were equally excited by his decision to participate. The entry fee for the event has been raised from Rs. 300 to Rs. 400 and he didn’t relent either. As he finished the process, I too stepped out of the office along with him to complete another errand. He asked me shyly if I can lend him Rs. 50. He had come from Chennai carrying the exact amount required for the trip and registration. Since the entry fee has gone up by Rs. 100, he fell short of the return fare. I took out the entire entry fee of Rs. 400 and handed over to him saying that he can participate as our guest. He refused the entire amount and took only Rs. 100. The following week, he returned back to pay the Rs. 100.

It stuck me deep inside that it is the money of people like him that we are spending to organise the event and made me feel more responsible towards it. It also made me to retain the entry fee at Rs. 400 as long as I was associated with the event.

In 2013, he appeared at the Chennai marathon expo. He did not register for the event as registrations for the event was only through website. I saw from far that he was hassling with Shahid, the race director, for an entry to the event. I met Shahid seperately, took the liberty to ask for an entry for him and pulled out my wallet to pay for it. On learning his case, he was kind to offer it for free. When I walked up to him and handed over the bib, he was elated but refused to accept it for free. He insisted that he pays for the event (which was quite pricey!) and thrusted the notes in my hand. Doing charitable acts cannot be always taken for granted!

I have not met him since and his appearance in Chennai marathon earlier this month made me feel so happy. Unfortunately for him, he registered for the full marathon and took the wrong turn to be disqualified!

Running for 100 days

Any idiot can face a crisis – it’s day to day living that wears you out.

– widely attributed to Anton Chekov

Sports persons are often unfairly judged on what they do for few minutes on the event day, ignoring the hours of drudgery of their routine training that consumes most of their lives. In long distance running, while achievements like running a marathon or a half is widely celebrated, the simple act of getting up every morning and stepping out is rarely appreciated. It is for no reason that runners consider the distance between their bed and shoe rack as the most difficult distance to accomplish!
Tanvir Kazmi, a renowned recreational long distance runner who has inspired many runners through his blog as well as being one of the finishers of the Comrades Marathon in 2010, found that many of the his fellow runners disappear soon after an event or two, especially during the summer months. Further, when they return back they are down with some injury or other. In 2014, he came up with a simple proposition – run a minimum of two Kms everyday for 100 days.

“It was a new experience for me too. There were tired days at work, travel, vacations and reasons aplenty to excuse oneself. This was a test of will power and I wanted to first try it on myself.”

says Tanvir, whose idea has now spread across India.

TANVIR KAZMI *Photo: Special arrangement*

Started formally in 2015, the 100 Days of Running has attracted people from places all over India. The idea is simple – run everyday, minimum of 2K and no pressure on timing or pace.The number of participants have gone up from 48 in 2015 to over 10,000 this year with at least 25% of them running all the 100 days. Coimbatore has its own champions – 15 of them went on to finish all the 100 days and we hear from some of them about their experiences.

Arunan Thlagavathi, 29
Arunan made his first attempt to run 100 days in 2017. However, it has to do be discontinued due to personal exigencies. This year, he was even more determined to finish and challenges at his work did not deter him from completing the 100 days. On asked about the most difficult days among the 100, he said, “One of the days, I had to report to work very early and could return back only at 11:00 PM. I realised that it is impossible to go home, change and go for a run. I asked my friend to drop me 2 Kms before home and I ran to home in formal clothes to ensure that I complete the distance for that day.”

Venkatesan R., 70
Venkatesan started running with the Porur Racers, a running group based out of Chennai. He extensively credits the group for getting him to challenge himself through running. He found running to be the perfect way to keep himself active as well as healthy post his retirement. “In Coimbatore, running with the Sai Baba Colony runners helped me to complete this challenge with ease. I was also moved by their nice gesture to honour me on the final day.” says Venkatesan. On asked about the most difficult days, he humbly commented, “Luckily, I am retired and don’t have any work pressures. The only commitment that I have is attending weddings and on those days, I have to be up early and finish my runs before honouring them.”

Manju Viswananthan, 39
For Manju, the 100 days challenge presented a transition from a walker to a runner. She started doing morning walks for keeping good health and found this challenge intriguing. It was her group U2 which brought her into this challenge. “Initially there were a lot of apprehensions on what it means for someone who has never been into sports to take up running. Once started, there was no looking back.” says Manju who found plenty of encouragement from the fellow runners in Sai Baba Colony. “There were days when I stepped out at 9:00 PM to go for a run and wondered what people would think of me. Once, you get over that fear, no distance, be it in running or life, is difficult to conquer,” says Manju, who has since gone on to finish a few 10K races during the 100 days.

SURIYA C. *Photo by special arrangement*

Prof. Suriyaprakash C, 50
Suriya has been a regular runner for a while but his travel commitments often presented him with a challenge to keep up with his running schedules. He found the 100 Days of Running as the best way to force himself into discipling himself towards regular running. Despite his travel schedule, ranging from monsoon drenched Mumbai to hot climes of Pondicherry, he ensured that he kept up his running schedule. The biggest challenge was left to the higher altitudes. “I had already planned for a trip to Kailas-Mansarovar during this time period and it was a real challenge to run in the higher altitudes beyond 4000 metres. The serene atmosphere helped me though,” says Suriya who believes that running should be integral part of everyone’s life.

Senthil Kumar, 48
Senthil started running about two years back for fitness and had simple targets initially. He was always of the misconception that running will hurt his knees and never ran beyond 100 Kms per month. Joining the Coimbatore Runners at CODISSA was a turning point as they constantly encouraged him towards new goals. “The 100 run target was daunting initially but I thought it’s the best way to clock up miles in the process,” says Senthil who has run an incredible 1350 Kms in the process, highest among other finishers in Coimbatore. He is now raring to get more runners to take up this challenge next year.

Gayathri Babu, 42
A couch potato till 2016 – medical ailments forced her to quit her job and she started focusing her efforts in getting active. The first 500m of walk was herculean, to say the least. Her journey from counting tubes of pain relieving ointments ointments to counting miles is an inspiring story by itself. She was determined in her efforts and transitioned her walks to run in January 2018. Support from her family, doctors and fellow runners have been indispensable. “We are always evaluated by comparing oneself with others. Running helped me to focus on myself and get better every day. The icing on the cake was getting my first ever medal, that too at an age of 42, is certainly something that I would cherish.” says Gayathri, who is gearing up for a long run!

These are stories of few and there are many more who have gone on to make running a way of life.

(And edited version of the Article appeared in The Hindu, Metro Plus, August 11, 2018 – https://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/fitness/coimbatores-runners-who-met-the-100-days-of-running-challenge/article24655640.ece)

Venu Sir – A Tribute

It all started with a casual conversation during May 2009. VPS and Shahid had then started a “Chapter” of Chennai Runners; morning runs were started at MCC, Chetpet during weekdays, in addition to the ‘home ground’ at Alwarpet. A new runner had started running with them. A regular walker until the age of 64, he had taken up to running with much apprehensions. To make him feel comfortable, VPS suggested to me to post a note on the Chennai Runners Google Groups to encourage him. I sent out a casual response to his mail on the group, completely unaware of whom I was trying to Encourage

Good one sir! Mails like these make me have second thoughts about bunking the next day’s run! Keep going on and on!

Eight years have gone since that conversation and little did I realise, that it was a beginning of a special relationship. It is certainly an understatement to say Venugopalan or Venu Sir, as we affectionately called him, has been an inspiration and a pillar of support for many initiatives by Chennai Runners over the past eight years. There wouldn’t be many runners, young and old alike, in Chennai who had not been touched by his warmth and kindness. During the days when the google groups were active, he contributed immensely and his mails were a treasure of knowledge – well researched scientifically and from his experience, as he constantly experimented with his running.

In July 2009, he was a participant in the ECR Run, which I happened to anchor on behalf of the Chennai Runners.

His kind words following the event certainly helped us to set the vision for the future,

the ECR event was very successful mainly because the entire core group of Chennai Runners (the International Marathoners) were in the centre of organising the event. We all SALUTE you for your selfless service. You are on your way to make ECR runs count at International level.

Since then, he has been part of most events organised by Chennai Runners, as a runner, volunteer, as well as Pacer. In 2014, I was assigned the task of finding pacers for Chennai Marathon for both the marathon as well as half-marathon categories. I wished to make the 6-hour bus driven by inspirational runners that would give the event a grandstand finish for the event. I hesitantly requested Venu Sir, as he was in best of his running form and a potential winner in veteran category of the full marathon. He always prioritised the cause of encouraging runners and gladly accepted the offer. Along with Arun Krishnan and Hariharan, they formed one of the best pacing teams ever in any marathons. The picture at the finish line would stay in my memory for years!

In 2016, I invited him to address the STAR Runners and he gladly accepted to do so. His presence and encouragement to runners was a great support for our initiative.

IMG_20160129_191808

His experiments in running is an example for anyone and everyone to emulate. He ran his first marathon at Auroville in 2011. I too participated in the event was totally exhausted at the 40th Km. It was there I saw a determined Venu Sir overtaking me and pushing me hard to the finish. From 4:55 in that event, he improved his timings for full marathon to 4:05 in Chennai Marathon 2013 and repeated it a month later at Mumbai in Januray 2014 with the same timing. He further went to finish at the top the runners above 70 years at Mumbai Marathon in January 2015.

He was never obsessed over podium finishes or prizes. His timings could have helped him secure a place in Boston marathon but he wasn’t the one to be fascinated by it. His disciplined approach to running, coupled with his ocean of knowledge on the subject served as an inspiration and example for everyone to follow. He always had kind words of encouragement for those who took up to any activity related to running, be it organising or writing about it. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that this blog owes its existence to him, as he was one of the regular readers and the highest contributor in terms of comments.

With Venu.jpeg — Final meeting with Venu Sir. Chennai Runners anniversary – March 2017

It is tough to admit that he would not be with us anymore. Over the past 177 days of running, I am sure every Chennai Runner has met him at least once and had the joy of being wished by him. The roads of Chennai is certain to be poorer without his presence in the morning. There would be a void which is almost impossible to fill in. As the running movement in Chennai gains from strength to strength, one man has certainly played his role and left behind memories for everyone to look back and reflect.

Personally, I am indebted to him for the multitude of interactions and the support towards every endeavour of mine – running, organising, blogging or the STAR Runners initiative. His response to my very first mail sets out his expectations from me, which I hope to live up to in his memory!

I am honoured by your kind encouragement. I have great admiration for you and I value your raw enthusiasm, I can almost feel it though we have never met. You have a very long innings to play in bringing running as a way of life in India.

Age is just a Number…

Any conversation about old people and their passions in life will invariably lead us to the movie “World’s Fastest Indian,” a biographical picture based on the life of legendary Kiwi motorcyclist Burt Monroe, who set world records for under 1000 cc motorcycle at the age of sixty-eight. In one of the scenes, Anthony Hopkins, playing the role of Burt Monroe, frustrated by youngsters not allowing him to ride his motor cycle would say,

“I am half the age as some of those scared out there. Everyone wants us old men to curl up in some quite corner; and die. Well, Burt Monroe is not ready to finish up…”

Inspirational old men pursuing their passions aren’t uncommon in long distance running. In the early-2000s, the Internet was filled with stories of Fauja Singh and his exploits in running marathons (42.195 Km), after he turned ninety years of age. This in turn inspired many others to take up long distance running immaterial of their age. Over the next decade, when running events were on rise in India, we started seeing more examples closer home. Eighty-five year old B.R. Janardhan, from Bangalore, was regularly grabbing one of the top three spots in the annual 10K event held at Bangalore in the above-70 category until a few years back. Despite improving his timings, he is now unable to get ranked in the top-3 as there are more competitors above 70 years of age!

In 2013, L. Dhanapal, then fifty-eight years of age, saw the advertisement for Coimbatore Marathon. A regular walker then, he fancied attempting the 21.1K run and planned to walk the entire distance. Over the run, the encouragement from the volunteers prompted him to run for some time during the course, before finishing it in 3:40:00. He later heard about the Coimbatore Runners and after much apprehension, joined them for a morning run.

“Initially, I thought I don’t belong to them as they all looked professional in their fancy outfits; more so, they run and I walk”!

The initial conversation with Ramesh Ponnuswamy, co-founder of the group, made him lose his inhibitions instantaneously. During the first run with the group, he was surprised that the group members stayed together till the last runner finishes.

“Ramesh kept running back and forth to ensure that I too finish along with the group. This encouraged me to run regularly with the group.”

He became a regular runner with the Codissia chapter of the group and went on to finish the next two editions of Coimbatore Marathon with a best timing of 2:20:00. He has also run two marathons and is now confident that he can run half-marathon on any given weekend!

For seventy-year old Ratan Asawa, long distance running helps him to connect with the youth and feel younger than his age would suggest. In his younger days, he was a regular walker and played basket-ball, volley-ball and shuttle-badminton. A chance conversation with his nephew, who lives in Amsterdam and a regular marathon runner, got him hooked to the idea of taking up long distance running. It was around that time, the first Coimbatore marathon was announced. He was of the impression that the ‘longest’ in long distance running would be anywhere between 10 to 15 kilometres. Unaware that the distance for half-marathon was 21.1 km, he set out to run the distance and surprised himself by completing it in 3:04:00. Over the next three years, he completed the event twice with a best timing of 2:24:00.

“Running with Coimbatore Runners helped me to enjoy running even more. The runners helped me in finding the right apparel and made me feel comfortable by running slower. After seeing some of them wear hydration bags, I too got one and now find it useful to run and cover longer distances above thirty kms!”

says Ratan, who can be found doing his long runs in Thadagam road during weekends. He is looking forward to do a Marathon very soon and training for it regularly.

For P. Chandramohan (65), running helped him to redefine his life post-retirement. In 2010, as he was heading towards the sunset of his stellar career with Larsen & Toubro, he was evaluating multiple opportunities to keep him engaged post retirement. He was an active sportsman during his school and college days and represented his college, Coimbatore Institute of Technology, in Hockey, Cricket & Table Tennis. During his work life, he kept himself active by playing Badminton and regular walks up to a distance of 5 Km. He learned about Chennai Runners and was motivated by the various conversations on running in their public forums. In 2012, he attempted his first half marathon and impressed with a timing of 2:06:00.

After retiring in 2013, he moved to Kovaipudur and started the Kovaipudur Walkers and Runners club to encourage the residents to take up active life. He led by example and completed his first marathon in 2013. He has since completed the distance seventeen times with a personal best of 4:47:00! In the recently organised Hyderabad Marathon, he finished third in the marathon (above 65 years category). To encourage more people into running, he also volunteers in organising running events and an active member of the organising team of Coimbatore Marathon. In 2016, he was instrumental in organising the all-woman running event in Kovaipudur which attracted participation of over 350 ladies.

“Age is just a number and not to be used as an excuse for a laid back life style. I have never felt bored all the 4 years since my retirement and I am able to face any adverse situation with confidence. A run in the morning keeps my spirits very positive throughout the day. Running with the enthusiastic Coimbatore Runners have always made me feel young”

Sivabalan Pandian, 58, may not be as old when compared to the other three runners above; nor has he retired from his professional life as a consultant to textile industries. He took up to running at the age of 52 to counter a host of medical ailments that he accumulated over his lifetime. Very soon, he discovered his passion for running and started taking part in half-marathons. Never obsessed with the timing of his runs, he soon started focusing on longer and ran his first marathon in January 2013. While he may be slow on his runs, he is a man in a hurry when it comes to running more marathons. He set himself a target of completing 100 marathons and achieved it by running the Dubai marathon in January this year. Since then, he completed a further 42 marathons to date, including running 10 marathons in 10 days in Italy in August.

He has travelled extensively across the world to participate in marathons and has run in all Continents except Antarctica, where he plans to run soon.

“In spite of being diabetic, there is no need for me to take insulin shots. Running has helped me to become fit and feel more energetic at work, despite getting old. It is a great opportunity to meet and befriend runners from all over the world. I would confidently say that running has helped me to think positively and become more altruistic”

At an age when most would expect him to wind down from his regular work, running has helped him to set his sights higher and in new avenues. He hopes to start an old age home for needy people as well as a running academy in India very soon.

Coimbatore is increasingly becoming a favourite destination for many retirees and there is ample evidence that regular exercise keeps them physically and mentally fit. There are many inhibitions, unsolicited advices and fears among the elderly that can be overcome only through regular interaction with runners from different age groups. As Anthony Hopkins says in the movie quoted above,

If you don’t go when you want to go, when you do go, you’ll find you’re gone.

Note: An edited version of this article was published in The Hindu – Metroplus on September 4th, 2017 – http://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/fitness/senior-citizens-on-how-they-began-running-and-what-its-done-for-them/article19619296.ece