Author ANU VAIDYANATHAN talks to ANANYA SHARMA about her journey of being a triathlete and breaking stereotypes at her book launch
Anu Vaidyanathan is not a lesser known figure in sports. A one-time computer engineer, who changed tracks midway to become a triathlete, there’s a lot more to her personality besides her achievements. So she gave a thought to penning down her journey and Harper Collins lapped it up. The result: Anywhere But Home, whic was released over the weekend.
Anu took to different forms of sports as a kid. There was never any performance pressure on her to excel and that’s what helped her become pretty much a self-starter. “The only time I was really happy was when I was doing one of the three sports. Riding the bike early morning gave me a different understanding of my neighbourhood. I think that was an education in itself. I also found a lot of happiness when I was out running without anyone around me,” said the all-rounder.
Anu first came to limelight when she became the first Indian woman to complete the Ironman Triathlon by training in India. Triathlon is a sport that consists of 3.8 km of swimming, 180 km biking and 42.2 km of running. She became the first Asian to compete in the Ultraman Canada, a race comprising a 10-km swim, a 420-km bike ride and an 84.4 km run. Anu is also the first Indian who qualified for the Half Ironman 70.3 clearwater world championship in 2008.
Anu’s story, from being an engineer to an athlete, is purely a story of a strong valued woman. She would get up at 4 am and dress up like a sack to avoid attention from the people. “I used to get up early morning and cover myself completely as a sack from top to bottom to become invisible,” shared the author.
When asked if she ever wanted to give up in her life, she exclaimed, “Almost everyday. I felt like giving up at so many points in my life. But it’s all about how you talk to yourself. If you talk to yourself positively, you won’t give up.”
The Indian triathlete also spoke about how there is no comparison between training for triathlons and giving birth to a child. Anu did her PhD in in a record-setting time of 26 months from the University of Canterbury in electrical engineering and recalls it to be one of the most brilliant experiences she has had.
She believes there is no training plan as such for anyone who aspires to be an athlete. An amateur who aspires to be an athlete should take it slow and work on his/her speed and fitness gradually. Sleep is another important aspect which should not be ignored.
As of now, Anu has no plans to open academies for training aspirants though she had to face a lot of difficulties in her initial years. There were times when she used to go for a run in the morning and people would give her looks. “I used to start counting 1,000 backward or multiply 17 by 17. This trick would just distract me,” she said.
She faced extra challenges in training, such as the absence of a women’s restroom in Bengaluru’s Kanteerva Stadium. She was heckled by men while biking on roads and even chased by dogs during her early morning runs. “Then when I was 23, a national level swimming coach advised me to tie the knot and settle down,” she added.
“You can’t do everything at once. Do the one thing that makes you happy and just follow your source of joy,” said Anu. Which is why she decided to put it all down though it was a very different and challenging experience. “There were times when I used to get up at 2 am and start making notes. I used to sleep with post-it notes next to me.”
This book will grab your hand and take you on a rollercoaster ride. You will feel like you are a part of every experience that she has ever had and will be inspired in so many different ways.