Suresh Sam Chandy is on cloud nine. After all, it’s not everyday that one is bestowed the title Ironman. Suresh says that he is as amazed with the title as those around him are.
The charted accountant, who is currently in between jobs, was not into sports as a child. “I played a bit of basketball and would occasionally go for a swim,” says Suresh. He developed a taste for running after participating in a 5k run in Bengaluru, organised by the company he was working for then. After moving back to the city, Sam, an alumnus of Christ Nagar and Mar Ivanios College, joined Iten Runners Club. “I joined them for their morning runs and went swimming in the evenings.”
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It was his fellow members at Iten who suggested that Suresh participate in a triathlon. “I also met Dr Manoj Madhav, a fellow Ironman from the city who was a great source of motivation.” Suresh also sought inspiration from various triathlon videos and started following various Ironmen from across the globe on Instagram. He soon added cycling into his workout routine.
While most athletes train for a triathlon for at least a year, Suresh began training in earnest three months before the event.
“I had to drop my plans for open water swimming as the sea is choppy during the monsoon. Also, due to a toe injury, I wasn’t able to do a good amount of training in running.”
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Suresh admits that many were sceptical at his attempt. “They felt that I should try out other levels of triathlons below the Ironman distance; such as the half Ironman, the Olympic distance event or the Sprint distance event. I believed that I would achieve my goal through dedicated training and by having faith in myself,” says the 35-year-old, who completed the full Ironman circuit at Copenhagen in 14 hours and nine minutes.
Suresh arrived in Denmark a few days before the event and trained with his bicycle, which he carried with him on the flight. He also did a few practice laps in the Baltic sea. “Although it was summer, the water was cold,” he remembers. On the day of the event, August 19, 2018, Suresh cycled down to the event from a homestay in Copenhagen. The turnout to the race, he says, was fantastic. “There were close to two lakh spectators cheering us on.”
There were only two Indians participating in the triathlon, Suresh and Sudhir Pawar from Maharasthra. While the swim through the artificial lagoon at Amager Strandpark was smooth, the bike course proved a challenge as Suresh started developing pain in his knee during the ride. “Thankfully, I carried pain gel in my pocket. I kept willing my body to keep fighting, kept telling it ‘you can do this.’” His watch malfunctioned after 100 km on the bicycle. “It did not show the correct distance and speed. I had to keep checking with volunteers and fellow athletes for the remaining distance, especially during the run.”
According to Suresh, what one thinks as unimaginable is proved wrong in an Ironman. “It’s an opportunity for us to push ourselves beyond our limits.” Sam, who hopes to further improve his skills in triathlon, plans to hire a professional coach and get himself a better bicycle. “Triathlon is a great way to cross train the body, bringing diversity in the fitness journey. I hope to inspire others and encourage them to become Ironman.”