IIT graduate enters race to be Ironman

GURGAON: The world of endurance sports still responds with reverence to the title of 'ironman.' Those who earn it have completed what's known as the Ironman Triathlon - a trio of challenges that includes long-distance swimming, cycling and running - at any of the designated venues, scattered worldwide. In August this year, this triathlon will be held in Kalmar, Sweden and among those vying for the Ironman status there would be the 25-year-old Gurgaon resident, Saurabh Aggarwal.
He registered for the event last year in August and since then, has followed a rigorous training regime. To minimize summertime discomfort, Saurabh begins his training post-midnight. "Between 12am to 6 am, generally," he says. This entails swimming at the Gymkhana Club, running in parks and residential enclaves, and cycling up and down the NH8.
At the Ironman Triathlon, participants have to swim for 3.8 kilometres, cycle for around 180 kilometres and run a distance of 42.2 kilometres, all in quick succession and within a duration of 17 hours. Every sport is played at the outer edges of human endurance, strength and resilience . But tirathletes aim to push the envelope even further.
This is one reason why the official Ironman slogan goes, 'anything is possible.' Saurabh exudes this drive, this optimism as starkly as any sportsman is expected to. But more than that, he says that the previous year of training as a traithlete has made him 'fall in love with these three sports.'
"I never appreciated the technicalities associated with running, cycling and swimming as I do now," he says.
There is certainly a hint of 'extreme sports' about the Ironman Triathlon, as indeed there has always been a predilection for adventure in Saurabh. After passing out as a chemical engineer from IIT Delhi in 2011, he attended courses on mountaineering and paragliding. Then he launched his own startup - an entrepreneurial adventure sport of its kind. But these past months have been entirely devoted towards achieving this one goal, his Ironman dream.
Still, there are worries and apprehensions along the way. In the absence of sponsors, Saurabh says that he has decided to 'crowd source' his next adventure, raising a demand for donations on the internet. "I am also making a documentary film on my training and participation in the triathlon. I hope it would encourage more people in India to sign up for similar events."
When he talks about Race Day - August 16 - it's with an air exhilaration almost juvenile in nature. "If I finish the race this year, I'll do it again. I'll improve my timings. This is not something you do once. It's the kind of thing that you include in your life," he says.
At the end of every Ironman race, Saurabh says, the names of those who manage to finish it are announced in celebratory tones as the title of 'Ironman' is bestowed upon them. "My dream is to hear it said: Saurabh is an Ironman."