Who is Ananya Prasad? Bengaluru native becomes first woman of colour to complete solo row across Atlantic

Bengaluru-born Ananya Prasad has created history by becoming the first woman of colour to complete a solo row across the Atlantic Ocean. The 34-year-old rowed from La Gomera in the Spanish Canary Islands, and reached Antigua in the Caribbean in 52 days, finishing second in the solo category. She left the Spanish island on December 11, 2024 and arrived in Antigua on February 1, 2025. 

Ananya, who moved to the UK when she was 6, is the granddaughter of noted Kannada poet G S Sivarudrappa. “I enjoy rowing as a form of exercise. I took this up more for the adventure of it rather than for the rowing,” she says.  

Rigorous training

The World’s Toughest Row is an annual expedition that sees participation from amateur rowers of all ages and nationalities. 

Ananya trained for three-and-a-half years before qualifying for the race. She went through technical, physical and mental resilience training to prepare herself for the high seas. Her technical skills came in handy when the rudder of her boat came apart. Not very comfortable with swimming in the deep sea, she was forced to dive under her boat in 20 knot winds and replace the part. She also had to face her fears when she had to carry out regular ‘hull cleans’. This involved jumping into the water and cleaning out the barnacles under the boat, to keep it from becoming slow. 

Over 52 days, Ananya spotted whales, orcas, birds, flying fish and even bugs. A typical day would involve 12 hours of rowing with sufficient breaks in between. She’d typically sleep for five to six hours a night. But she never felt isolated. “I was constantly in touch with the technical, weather and social media teams, so I did not feel like I was truly alone,” she explains.

Christmas on high seas

The boat was designed especially for ocean rowing to withstand the extreme conditions. It was also equipped with dehydrated food that was easy to cook, apart from snacks like chocolate and chips. Celebrating Christmas in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean was no big deal. She feasted on her supply of mince pies and mulled wine. But it was not always smooth sailing. 

While chatting on her cell phone, she accidentally dropped it into the ocean. Luckily, she had a secondary phone through which she could continue to stay in contact with her family and her team. 

It’s been three days since Ananya has been back on land. She is currently recuperating and enjoying some downtime in Antigua.