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Discover how Rajasthan’s Suraj Meena defied high-altitude challenges to set a new record for non-Ladakhis, finishing second in the gruelling 122km Silk Route Ultra Ladakh Marathon after an incredible cycling journey.
Photograph: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
Key Points
- Suraj Meena, a non-Ladakhi, finished second in the 122km Silk Route Ultra Ladakh Marathon.
- He completed the high-altitude race in 12 hours and 35 minutes, setting a new record for non-Ladakhis.
- Meena highlighted the extreme difficulty for non-locals due to heavy breathing at high altitudes, requiring extensive training.
- His strategy involved a run-walk approach after 40km due to increasing elevation and decreasing oxygen.
- Meena undertook an epic 2,400km cycling journey from Jaipur to Ladakh to participate in the marathon.
For a non-Ladakhi, conquering the high-altitude 122km ultra marathon is a Herculean task, requiring months of training, according to Suraj Meena, who finished second at the Silk Route Ultra Ladakh Marathon here on Friday. Suraj was the first among non-Ladakhis, clocking 12 hours and 35 minutes to finish the Silk Route Ultra Marathon.
“I am very happy as it was a dream come true moment. It is a big thing for me to finish in 12 and half hours. “It is very difficult for people outside Ladakh to finish in 12.5 hours. Before this, for a non-Ladakhi, the record stood at 15 hours and six minutes,” Suraj told PTI after completing the race.
Conquering High-Altitude Challenges
Explaining the challenge of running at high altitude, the marathoner from Rajasthan said:”It is very difficult, it is the most difficult for people who are not from Ladakh, because they are doing heavy breathing at high altitude, so it is a little difficult because of that. But for this, I have trained and I have been training here for a month now.”
“I have participated for the third time in the Ladakh Marathon. First, I did a full marathon in 2022, after that I did KC last year and this year I did Silk Route.”
Strategic Approach To The Race
Talking about his strategy for the ultra marathon, the long-distance runner said: “I was leading till 40km, then the elevation started from there. “The altitude increases, the oxygen was getting heavy, so because of that, it was a little difficult to run. So I adopted the run-walk strategy and I did not do anything so that the person goes ahead,” he observed.
An Epic Journey To The Starting Line
Suraj also recalled cycling from Jaipur to Ladakh to participate in the marathon. “I came by cycle in 2024. It was 2,400km from Jaipur via Manali and I reached in 12 days. I liked the mountains, so I did not know how I reached in 12 days. My coach came to receive me, he was coming, so he came a day later. I went to receive him, I did not know how I reached in 12 days. After that, I went from here to Jaipur by cycle via Kashmir. It was 1,500km and was done in 12 days,” he recalled.
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