INDIA is often associated with the lotus flower, roving cows, the Himalayas, exotic spiced cuisine and the Taj Mahal. But one thing that doesn’t come
to mind is triathlon. A sport not known for participation from less developed
areas of the globe, triathlon is slowly starting to take root in India. And one
teenage female, Pooja Chaurushi, is part of the movement.
Chaurushi, 19, although not well known in the U.S., is slowly making a
home for herself on the ITU Asian circuit as a Junior Elite competitor and one
of the only female representatives of her country. In 2008, she competed for the
first time at the Amakusa ITU Triathlon Asian Cup in Japan, then the following
year she jetted to Kazakhstan for two ITU races: Burabay ITU Premium Asian
Cup and the Kokshetau ITU Triathlon Asian Cup. But the race she’s most proud
of participating in is the Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship
Grand Final, which took place at Australia’s Gold Coast.
She participated in the Gold Coast Grand Final in the junior women’s division after winning a scholarship through a writing contest. Although she came
in dead last, she remains unfazed. “I was still recovering from a stress fracture
in my shin that I got while cycling in Kazakhstan,” she explains.
But, first things first: How did a young girl discover such a sport in a country
that has no tri-specific shops, few triathlon competitions and few resources for
specialized coaching save the Internet and books?
“In 2007, I got a chance to compete in my first triathlon,” Chaurushi says as
she’s about to explain her introduction to the sport. But just as sudden as her
random quest to be a triathlete, Rajen Shah, her mentor and
financier, interjects: “And she won! She won on a touring bike
that she borrowed from a delivery driver; it was 22 kilograms
and she won the nationals!” The nationals Shah is speaking
of are the Indian 33rd National Games.
Chaurushi backtracks to explain.
“In 2004, I was selected for the (Indian) Junior Squad
Triathlon Camp for beginners. A coach from Australia was there
and he gave us all the knowledge about triathlon, but I wasn’t
ready or interested in competing yet.” She realized she had to
find someone who knew more about the sport, someone from
her hometown of Surat in the state of Gujarat. This proved
difficult, for even though Surat is a bustling metropolis, the
sixth largest city in all of India. Enter Shah: The only person
in Gujarat who knows anything about cycling. Well, at least
if you ask Surat’s local bike shop clerk.
“In Surat, not many people know about sport cycling. No
one here knows about what kind of bike you use in racing, let
alone triathlon,” Shah says. He’s been cycling for 10 years and
knows a thing or two about the difficulties of learning about
the sport in Gujarat. “Overall our city is not as conservative as
you may think … things are quite modern here. But, initially,
when Pooja was racing around wearing a bike helmet, she did
