A race to find the fastest

Running Challenge

The Bangalore leg of Faastest Indian, an initiative taken by Puma, was recently held in the City.

The challenge is an attempt to locate the fastest runner in the country, and is being held in eight cities across India.

In the Bangalore leg, billiard champion Pankaj Advani took a shot at grabbing the title at RMZ Infinity.

Although he was initially supposed to run a 100-metre track, it was later shortened to a 10-metre length. Plenty of people who had gathered at the venue decided to try their hand at it as well, sprinting across the track and then checking their speed to see who was fastest.

When Pankaj appeared, he looked calm and relaxed — not in the least nervous about the results of his sprint.

Casually dressed in a T-shirt and jeans, he took the run around three times, making an attempt each time to increase his speed.

Winning the title of the fastest Indian was special not just because it is a matter of pride — the winner of the challenge is also given a chance to fly down to Zurich and meet Usmain Bolt, who is currently the fastest runner in the world. Pankaj told Metrolife that this was one of the main reasons he decided to take up the run.

“Being associated with such a campaign is great, because I get the chance to meet Usmain Bolt — what more could I want? It’s nice that people across the country are getting a chance to test their skills and see how far they can push themselves,” he said, adding that he hadn’t really spent much time training for the short sprint.

“My sport — billiards — doesn’t actually require me to be a sprinter or runner, so I haven’t trained for this at all. I’m just going to go for it,” he said.

Other than a fun angle, he pointed out that trying his hand at running could actually be beneficial for his health.

 “It isn’t just a fun event; running is good for the system, it keeps me healthy and builds my stamina,” he explained.

Faastest Indian is going to be held in seven other cities, with sportspeople competing for the chance to meet Usmain Bolt.