New Delhi: Indian Ultra runner Sufiya Sufi set the Guinness world record as the fastest female to cover the high-altitude, 485 km Manali-Leh stretch on foot.
Talking about her 2023-24 expedition plans, she told Sports Lounge “I work with my team and coaches throughout the year to plan and execute expeditions. From finalizing the dates, sourcing permissions to acclimatizing as per the climatic conditions, a lot goes in a successful expedition.
This year I completed a 470 km long expedition, ‘The Tribute Run’ that began at Siachen War Memorial and concluded at Kargil War.
In 2023, I plan to embark on a few international expeditions, while my long-time goal and most ambitious project is circumnavigating the globe in 2024.” she added.
Being an Under Armour athlete, she stated ” Under Armour has helped me power through various expeditions in past and continues to equip and inspire me to push my limits. The brand’s innovative performance solutions and values have helped me overcome the physical and mental challenges in my journey as an ultra-marathoner.”
In 2018, Sufiya took up running to break away from her aviation job, to relax and de-stress. Since then, she has entered the Guinness Book of records three times and has set several benchmarks for ultrarunning in India.
Speaking about training for ultramarathons, she shared “The first and foremost aspect of my training involves staying positive and believing in the process. A progressive training routine in a build up to marathon helps in mapping my limits and pushing right through them. To ensure I am consuming the right amount of nutrition, I maintain a balanced and healthy diet that helps me in my training and recovery. Lastly, having the right performance gear plays an important role in my success. The Under Armour gear including the Machina shoes that I have used in all my expeditions have helped me perform better.”
