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Journalism of Courage
Waking up at 5 am, swimming at the Talkatora Indoor Stadium in New Delhi or the Basavangudi Acquatic Centre in Bengaluru, running 10 kilometres and cycling indoors. This was Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya’s routine every morning for the last couple of months. On October 27, Surya became the first Indian MP to participate in — and complete — the Ironman 70.3 race.
In eight hours, 27 minutes and 32 seconds, the BJP MP finished all three legs of the challenge: a 1,900-metre swim in the Arabian Sea, followed by 90 km of cycling, and a 21.1-km run. The 70.3 in the title of the challenge refers to the distance covered when converted to miles.
From Swami Vivekanand’s teachings to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Fit India’ movement, Surya, mostly in the news over controversial statements, is clear about what motivated him to take on the race. Besides, the 33-year-old MP tells The Indian Express, the experience has given him tools to better balance his political commitments, by making him “more disciplined” with his time and “boosting perseverance”.
The PM congratulated him on his achievement, posting on X: “Commendable feat!
I am sure this will inspire many more youngsters to pursue fitness-related activities.”
Surya was trained by Shreyas Hosur, the first Railway Officer to complete the Ironman Triathlon, and also got support from Bengaluru-based physiotherapist and conditioning coach Somya Rout.
The BJP MP has previously participated in the Bangalore Marathon, the BMF Olympic Triathlon, and a cycling relay during the Goa Ironman in 2022. But the decision to take on the Ironman challenge “solidified” after the Lok Sabha elections in May, he says.
“I’m not an inherently athletic person, but I was deeply inspired by Swami Vivekananda’s ideals. He described how a young Indian should have ‘muscles of iron and nerves of steel,’ with a spirit as strong as a thunderbolt. That ideal is what drew me to Ironman,” Surya says.
‘The Ironman challenge instilled greater discipline in my life,” he says. “It epitomises mental endurance. It is about tackling the mind over body.”
At the same time, Surya says, he ensured that the training for the Ironman challenge “did not interfere with my public responsibilities”. A day before the event, he was at an event with Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar in Bengaluru, he points out.
Still, the day of the race was an “endurance test”. “Transitioning from cycling 90 km to running was the hardest part. My legs wobbled and cramped, especially in the last 5 km of the run. But the support from the crowd was encouraging. I just had to push through the pain to cross the finish line,” Surya says.
The MP has already set himself the next challenge: The Mumbai Marathon of January 2025.
