Indian Ultra runner Sufiya enters record books for third time
The 35-year-old has set the record as the fastest woman to cover the high-altitude, 485 km Manali-Leh stretch on foot. She took 156 hours to complete the gruelling stretch.
Indian Ultra runner Sufiya Sufi Runner has set the Guinness world record as the fastest female to cover the high-altitude, 485 km Manali-Leh stretch on foot. Sufiya—she has officially changed her last name from Khan to Sufi Runner—started her run on the morning of September 25 last year and finished on October 1, taking 156 hours (6 days, 12 hours, 6 minutes).
_1652115648408_1652115655169.jpg "Sufiya Sufi ‘Runner’(Under Armour)")
“To enter the record books thrice is overwhelming. This run pushed the limits of human endurance and I am glad to have conquered the testing conditions. It was a race as much against time as against the elements. I hope it creates awareness about Ultra running in the country,” said Sufiya, who received her certificate from Guinness last week. Her previous records are becoming the fastest woman to cover the golden quadrilateral (6,002 km in 110 days, 23 hours, 24 minutes) and running from Kashmir to Kanyakumari (4,000 km in 87 days, 2 hours, 17 minutes).
The Ajmer athlete, who worked as ground staff at the Delhi airport for a decade, took up distance running in 2017 to escape the monotony of her job. Largely self-trained, Sufiya had 20 days of acclimatisation training to prepare for running at altitudes upwards of 2,500m. This included training on the Rohtang (3,978m) and Khardung (5,359m) passes.
“Acclimatisation is the key. I had long bouts of nausea and splitting headache when I first went there. More than once I collapsed while running. But all that prepared my body and mind for the challenges.
“It was a mental battle too. You can train your body and build all the endurance you want, but if you are mentally weak, you're done. Guinness had informed me that I will have to finish the race within 10 days to set the record, but I was determined to do it much quicker to make it last longer,” she added.
Surviving mainly on a liquid diet besides dates, fruits and dry fruits, Sufiya averaged almost 20 hours a day, stopping only to get some sleep. Accompanied by her partner Vikas, coach Rajinder Yadav and some volunteers, she would camp for the night in the icy wilderness and desolate villages as the night temperatures would dip below the freezing point.
“Running at night was tough. It was eerie and freezing and the wind velocity often made it impossible to breathe. I felt my lungs would burst,” she recalled. “On high passes, the oxygen levels dropped to 50 percent, which meant I could barely walk. The weather was unpredictable, but I was lucky to not face any landslides or avalanches.”
Help arrived in the form of locals and Indian army personnel, who would share priceless information on terrain and weather, besides offering food and shelter. “Staying in army camps was a surreal experience. The soldiers were very accommodating and helped me in every way possible. They advised me to keep having lots of water as it was the only way to inject some oxygen into the bloodstream. Digesting solid foods, I was told, consumes oxygen. All that advice came in handy, especially on places like Sarchu and Rohtang Pass.”
Sufiya, who is supported by Under Armour, plans to circumnavigate the globe in 2024.
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