Why ‘Ironman’ IPS officer Krishna Prakash swam against the waves, from Gateway of India to Elephanta Caves

Earlier, opening up on his feat in a tweet, the athlete who won Ironman in 2017, and Ultraman in 2018 wrote, “Today, I completed the daunting task of swimming from Gateway of India to Elephanta caves and became the first person in the world to do so. Contrary to the popular swimming route of Elephanta caves to Gateway of India where swimmers ride the waves of the high tides towards the gateway, I decided to do it from the reverse side against the waves.”

Krishna Prakash dedicated the expedition to ’Drowning Prevention Awareness (Source: Krishna Prakash)

Prakash, who covered a distance of 16.20 kilometres, did it in five hours 26 minutes. “This expedition is dedicated to ‘Drowning Prevention Awareness’. Trust my adventure swimming will inspire young Indians to try their best to bag Olympic medal in 10k open water swimming,” he added in the tweet.

Prakash also informed that he had three safety boats with officials and equipment — “one ahead of me, one behind, and one on the side” — as a precautionary measure.

Today I completed the daunting task of swimming from Gateway of India to Elephanta caves and became the first person in the world to do so. Contrary to the popular swimming route of Elephanta caves to Gateway of India whereas swimmers ride the waves of the the high tides towards… pic.twitter.com/8IIX4O5Xho

— Krishna Prakash (@Krishnapips) March 26, 2023

The event, organised by the National Institute of Swimming and recognised by the World Open Water Swimming Association, was certified by the Swimming Association of Maharashtra, which is affiliated with the Maharashtra Olympic Association. Jayaprakash Duble, President, JD Sports Foundation, and Jayant Duble, an internationally renowned swimmer, supervised the swim, which was flagged off by Olympian Suraj Karkera. Olympian Dhananjay Mahadik presided over the felicitation ceremony after the end of the swim.

The idea of undertaking the swim, Prakash informed, came up during a discussion with an official from Indian Swimming Institute in November-December 2022. “The idea (of swimming in the reverse direction) was alluring to me and I decided to do it following a few practice sessions in dams in Panshet, Lonavala, and Ambe Valley,” said Prakash, 52, who first learnt swimming as a 10-11 year old growing up in Jharkhand’s Hazaribagh. “I used to swim in Hazaribagh canary, so the courage to undertake open water swimming comes naturally. Also, everyone should learn swimming. It saves many lives, ” he added.

Shubhankar Thosar, swimming and water polo coach, Deccan Gymkhana, Pune mentioned that swimming against the waves requires double the effort and Prakash’s effort is “commendable”. “Open water swimming needs a lot of dedicated strokes, and fitness. It is truly a momentous effort,” Thosar told indianexpress.com.

Krishna Prakash during his attempt (Source: Krishna Prakash)

On dedicating the achievement to the youth of the country and trying to inspire them towards open water swimming, which was recognised as a sport since 2008 in the Olympics, Prakash said, “Indians are into swimming but not in open water. We have the potential to succeed and practice since we have so many coastlines whether in Maharashtra, Karnataka, or Odisha unlike other parts of the world. The message is to get youth to seek endurance challenges like these.”

Does he not fear? “Whenever I am swimming, I am in a different mindset, almost like a trance where I don’t think of any untoward incidents — just keep the goal in mind. I recite poems, shlokas in my mind to keep going. There is no other joy than endurance, especially in open waters because you can get a better insight in to yourself,” shared Prakash.

A glimpse of Gateway of India (Source: Krishna Prakash)

On his diet and fitness routine, the IPS officer shared that he prefers home-cooked food including eggs, paneer, sprouted grains, vegetables, and curd. “I generally wake up by 5, but sometimes take up cycling expeditions during the dead of the night to Pune or Nashik to keep myself fit,” said Prakash.

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