Pune-based ultra-cyclist Srinivas Gokulnath added yet another feather to his cap when he successfully completed the 2200 km Race Around Austria (RAA) in five days, 10 hours and nine minutes.
Srinivas, who had become the first solo Indian to have finished the 4900km Race Across America (RAAM) in 2017, was one of the 12 cyclists to complete the race in which the cyclists have to climb as high as 30,000m in the Alps.
His effort was all the more special because Srinivas had suffered an accident just before the start of the race during training and had injured his ribs and had a broken bicycle frame. “This is when our teamwork came in handy. My crew chief Rutvik Khare flew with another frame from Pune to Austria. Some key parts of that also were broken during flight. Fortunately, we got another frame here that my crew turned it into a marvellous bike,” Pune Mirror quoted Srinivas as saying from Austria.
Speaking about the race, Srinivas said, “It’s more of a mental game than just physical endurance. One has to win the battle of mind over body in ultra-cycling. The conditions are obviously tough in Austria. It’s great to finish such a race.”