Forty-six-year old Arun Bharadwaj is on a mission to create a record by running for 36 hours on a treadmill, as part of the Airtel Hyderabad Marathon. He started at 6 am on Friday and will complete the run by 6 pm on Saturday.
An ultramarathon runner from New Delhi, Arun has many records to his credit. He is the first Indian to win a 567 km, six-day race in South Africa and is also the first Indian to finish one of the toughest ultramarathons, Badwater, among many others.
Last year in Hyderabad, Arun ran for 24 hours on a treadmill and had run close to 170 km. This time, he wants to cross 200 km.
Arun refuels himself during breaks. He gets a five-minute break every hour and he can either take the break or accumulate the break time and take it at one go... in three to four hours.
“He has a close association with the Hyderabad Runners group. Even when he was running from Kargil to Kanyakumari, he got the best reception in Hyderabad. We know him through the marathon circuit,” informs Rajesh Vetcha, founder and president of Hyderabad Runners Society.
He adds, “Arun has a support team of four people who will be next to him if he needs to refuel or any other kind of help. He is not doing it for records... he is doing it to create awareness among the youth and to inspire them to follow a healthy and active lifestyle.”
Before starting his run, Arun said, “I want to extend my contribution towards a healthy lifestyle and sensitise people on the need to look after their health and stamina to sustain themselves in the competitive world that requires a lot of endurance.”
