This year’s Duathlon definitely had a few different entities, to name a few – The timing chips, separate routes for running and cycling. What was not different at this year’s Duathlon was the intensity of all athletes present.

Here’s a miniscule tribute to all those who won:

The Open Men’s Short category winner was a supremely fit and even paced, machine like Mohammed Shariq. Wonder where he gets all those traits? Inside sources tell us that he trains with an Athletic club at Jayanagar called YUVA. Everyday! Twice! Phew, that is commendable. Apart from the Duathlon this awesome athlete has won a few more laurels, we shall delve into them some other time as we will need an excel sheet to list them down! Another anecdote our insiders have to state is that the guy who he managed to beat – Rahul - is an old adversary and the two of them have been competing at various events building a rivalry much like the Nadal – Federer one.

Now on to the Open Women’s Long category winner, Neera Katwal, another prominent athelete. This winner cycles around Bangalore on her Hero Thunder MTB, just so that she can rough it out, helping her train to be the athlete she is. The beauty of her win was the fact that she bruised herself across the asphalt while cycling, gained a flat tyre, yet managed to win! She would like to pay tribute
to Manjula, a fellow participant who actually gave up her cycle during the race just so that Neera could compete again after fall. She would also like to show her gratitude to K N Murthy who lent her his Merida Road bike for the race without the slightest of hesitation and Sudhir for pacing her during the final moments of the race.

What do you say to someone who doesn’t own a cycle, hasn’t ridden one since the last Duathlon and then goes on to win his category (The Senior Men’s Long category)? Well, when it’s Ashok Nath you just smile and nod. When we spoke with Ashok about his race, this is what he had to share. “Good fun, the weather gods smiled that day and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Still recall how wobbly the legs feel after the cycling section when they are asked to run again. Makes me wonder how an iron-man race would be if the running section is a full marathon. It’s my sheer fitness that wins me events, a fitness based on a regimen of adaptive running, gyming and an overall active lifestyle. Top that with a “never say die” attitude and it’s a potent combination”

 This athlete is an absolute pleasure to talk to! Ladies and Gentlemen, introducing – Juju Harunsyah Grieve, the winner of Senior Women’s Long category. This is for the benefit of those who don’t know this athlete: She has been cycling and running for close to 20 years now, not only that, she has been doing it all over the planet. This Indonesian effervescent woman has left her mark doing just that in most countries she has resided. She is also last year’s Duathlon winner and says that she is not as happy with her performance, the reason being she didn’t train as hard as she could have. None the less, her husband Norman was thrilled to know of her win, who also took part in the Duathlon and came within the top 10 of his category. She goes on to say “It’s great to compete and win even at this age.”

As for the other winners, Kudos to them. The sorry bit is that we couldn’t get in touch with all of them, hence are unable to share any anecdotes of their race experience. None the less, they still won the race!

Until next time…