Army sepoy from Bengaluru competes in IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship 2026

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Sepoy Samadhan Babasaheb Thorat, posted at the ASC Centre and College, Bengaluru, taking part in the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Nice, France, on Sunday.

An Indian Army personnel from Bengaluru recently completed the gruelling IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship 2026 in Nice, France.

Sepoy Samadhan Babasaheb Thorat, posted at the ASC Centre and College, Bengaluru, competed in the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship on September 13 and crossed the finish line in 6 hours, 2 minutes and 49 seconds.

The IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship is a triathlon comprising swimming, cycling and running.

Sepoy Thorat joined the Indian Army in 2018 and, after completing his training at the ASC Centre and College, underwent commando training in 2021 at 622 ASC Para, Agra.

He said he took up cycling in 2023 as a recreational activity, which soon became a passion. Cycling then led him to ultra-running, ultra-cycling and triathlons.

He said he began preparing for IRONMAN 70.3 Goa 2025, following which he qualified for the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship 2026 in Nice.

“The IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship was very demanding as it involved hours of swimming, cycling and running. It was extremely exhausting, but I managed to cross the finish line in 6 hours, 2 minutes and 49 seconds,” he said.

Sepoy Thorat said he had been training for the championship in Nice for the past 10 months. His preparation, apart from running, cycling and swimming, also included weight training.

He said he trained for over 20 hours every week while preparing for the championship.

Sepoy Thorat added that he developed an interest in the sport after meeting Col. Jangvir Lamba, an IRONMAN finisher who was posted at the ASC Centre and College.

Prior to joining the Army, Sepoy Thorat, who hails from a farming family in Sonke village in Solapur district, Maharashtra, also worked in a hotel.

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