In case you search for the title Sufiya Sufi, you’ll discover she calls herself a “humanity first” ultrarunner. You’ll additionally uncover that she’s set 5 working Guinness World Data in 5 years’ time — with no prior expertise as a runner. After 10 years of working in aviation, she made the daring transfer to chase her working desires and see the world on the identical time.

Primarily based out of Manali, India, a Himalayan resort city in India’s northern Himachal Pradesh state, the 38-year-old athlete focuses on chasing among the longest world information in working, starting from 200 kilometers throughout Qatar to her latest challenge, a 40,075-kilometer or longer route circumnavigating the world. With a small assist crew, that typically consists solely of her fiancé, she has tackled among the longest routes in India and isn’t even near working out of concepts on what to do subsequent.

Sufiya Sufi coaching in Ladakh, India, at 17,000 ft. All images courtesy of Sufiya Sufi.

Childhood Years

Sufi grew up in Ajmer within the northern Indian state of Rajasthan as a center baby with two brothers. The household misplaced their father when Sufi was an adolescent, and the three kids have been raised by their mom.

Whereas Sufi didn’t take part in sports activities throughout her childhood, she turned a classical dancer and stage performer throughout her faculty years, incomes a Bachelor of Arts at Maharshi Dayanand Saraswati College, Ajmer in Rajasthan. After faculty, she moved to Delhi, India’s capital territory and an enormous metropolitan space within the northern portion of the nation, to finish a diploma course in aviation earlier than coming into the aviation trade for 10 years.

A Demanding Aviation Profession

Sufi began working for health in 2017 whereas working on the airport, the place she did floor operations, check-ins, and boarding. In describing that interval of her life, Sufi says, “That was a time after I was feeling pissed off with my job and bored. As a result of I labored the night time shift for nearly 10 years, I had well being points.” She knew she needed to make a change. “I assumed, I ought to do one thing for my well being. I began working within the park to maintain myself.”

She first went out on a three-kilometer path in a close-by park. It was the primary time in her complete life that she’d gone on a run. Not lengthy after, she ran the 2017 Delhi Half Marathon. It wasn’t lengthy till she elevated her distance once more. “After that race, I assumed, I ought to begin doing marathons, as a result of I felt good after doing the half marathon.”

She was intrigued to see what she might do along with her working. “After I discuss pushing limits, it was a great way to verify my limits, and I pushed myself.” She ran the Noida Grand Marathon in Delhi and, afterward, a 50-kilometer occasion in 2018.

In the identical time frame, her companion Vikas Saroha began biking for health as a option to cope after he misplaced his father. They’d met in 2016 after they have been each workers on the airport. Lower than two years after that first run, at age 33, Sufi left her job in aviation. On the time, she’d been promoted to a place because the Responsibility Officer in Aviation on the airport’s departure zone, however the job didn’t accommodate her rising curiosity in long-distance working.

“I left the job as a result of I used to be considering of longer expeditions. I wanted lengthy leaves, and my boss was not prepared to present me lengthy leaves, so I needed to depart the job,” she explains.

Earlier than there was working, there was work within the aviation trade. Sufiya Sufi within the heart.

Her First Expedition

In 2018, Sufi began planning her first expedition: a 702-kilometer highway run on a route known as the Golden Triangle that connects the Indian cities of Delhi, Jaipur, and Agra.

There have been many causes Sufi determined to begin happening expeditions, together with eager to do extra along with her life than work on the airport. “There was frustration in me after I was working in an workplace. I assumed working could be one of the best ways to verify my limits or unfold a trigger or message.”

She didn’t have a template or function mannequin to base her journeys on. “There have been many issues stepping into my thoughts, saying I ought to do an expedition, which is new in India. I began and wished to experiment with expeditions — it appeared adventurous and like mountaineering. I stated, ‘I ought to do that.’”

She set an Indian nationwide report on the route, turning into the quickest finisher on foot in 16 days, one hour, 17 minutes.

Vikas Saroha: Fiancé and Staff Chief

Saroha, Sufi’s companion, has been her largest supporter from the beginning. He impressed her to run the Golden Triangle after he’d cycled the route earlier. Saroha additionally takes care of all the logistical particulars of the expeditions. “He does all the route creation and planning for my expeditions. He does the identical routes on a motorcycle,” Sufi explains of the partnership.

With related motivations as Sufi, Saroha additionally give up his aviation job in 2019. Now, he’s Sufi’s crew chief for her expeditions and does all the organizing, and he supplies her with a diet and hydration plan. Saroha additionally studied to turn out to be a coach and took over Sufi’s coaching as nicely.

Sufi says, “Vikas comes up with concepts. I simply run. I have a look at the plan, and he tells me the subsequent problem. He’s an enormous assist for me.”

Her coaching plan incorporates energy coaching, yoga, and pranayama breath work, which helps along with her psychological focus. Usually, she does one long term on Saturday or Sunday. Her weight coaching focuses on knee and glute reinforcement, and she or he additionally does body weight exercises and takes a relaxation day each Monday.

The pair stay with a avenue canine named Tiger.

5 Again-to-Again Guinness World Data

The yr following the Golden Triangle run, Sufi set a report for the quickest time accomplished by a feminine runner touring from the Kashmir area to town of Kanyakumari. The route goes from the northern tip to the southern finish of India.

This 2019 record-setting run was additionally Sufi’s first Guinness World Document achievement. She coated practically 4,000 kilometers in 87 days, two hours, and 17 minutes.

Sufi was solely getting began. Subsequent, she set a second Guinness World Document on the Indian Golden Quadrilateral highway community. The 6,002-kilometer community of nationwide highways hyperlinks the Indian cities of Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai. Then 35 years previous, she accomplished the feat in April 2021 in 110 days, 23 hours, and 24 minutes.

For her subsequent run in 2021, she headed to the mountains. “I used to be doing solely highway working at the moment. Then I assumed I ought to do one thing more difficult,” she says.

Her third Guinness World Document was what she named the Himalayan Extremely Run Expedition. She coated 485 kilometers between the high-altitude cities of Manali and Leh, India, turning into the primary feminine athlete to finish the route. The mountainous terrain offered a higher problem for her — which was the aim — by reaching an altitude of 17,480 ft and gaining a cumulative 26,902 ft of elevation. She completed on October 1, 2021, in 156 hours.

In January 2023, Sufi ran throughout the nation of Qatar from south to north in a distance of 200 kilometers. She completed the hassle in 30 hours and 31 minutes and set a fourth Guinness World Document.

Later that yr, Sufi set her fifth Guinness World Document by resetting the report for working from Manali to Leh in India. This time, she accomplished the route in 98 hours. She determined to return as a result of she “wished to go underneath 100 hours.” She says, “After I did that report in 2021, I didn’t suppose my preparation was good, and I assumed I might do higher. That was my finest expertise.”

Sufiya Sufi finishes working 200 kilometers throughout Qatar.

Motivations

Earlier than 2017, Sufi didn’t have a sports activities background and hardly took on challenges, mentally or bodily. When she began setting working targets, she says, “Nobody was believing in me.” However she believed in herself. “I believe the optimistic mindset retains you going and pushes you to take extra challenges.”

Sufi believes that mindset is a really sturdy device. “Being a optimistic thinker is vital. Your physique and thoughts get into it, and also you wish to problem your self extra, and that’s what I’m doing.”

She’s most intrigued by creating her personal expeditions and routes. “I’m believing my very own race — I don’t imagine in competitors. That is one of the best ways for me to verify my limits.” The expedition runs additionally present a great way to see new locations. “I like touring, and it’s one of the best ways to journey the world. I coated all of India on foot. It’s my ardour. When you do one expedition and one other, you get energy and confidence to do different challenges.”

The assertion “know no limits” couldn’t be more true for Sufi.

For 2024, she’s planning an expedition throughout the United Arab Emirates. She goals to finish the 700-kilometer distance in seven days, checking off 100 kilometers every day. Her plan is to finish the run in November or December.

She’s additionally going to do an Worldwide Affiliation of Ultrarunners (IAU) 24-hour stadium run competitors in Bengaluru, India, to attempt to qualify for the 2025 IAU 24-Hour World Championships in France.

In December, she’ll return to run Qatar once more. Her earlier report was damaged by six minutes, and she or he’d prefer to get the title again.

Within the Pipeline: Operating Across the World

Beginning in 2025, Sufi is planning to run world wide with the aim of protecting 40,075 kilometers, which is the circumference of the earth. She’ll begin and end in India, and the route sews collectively about 20 international locations together with Australia, a number of throughout Europe, america, India, Myanmar, Thailand, and Canada. She goals to set one other Guinness World Document for this effort.

“India is the largest distance I’ve coated, and I’ve coated a complete nation. I did the entire thing on foot. I assumed, I ought to go overseas and go to different international locations. The thought is to discover.”

“Nobody has accomplished that route, however I wish to do that. Vikas can be with me,” she says. “After I’m working expeditions, he helps me in a automobile. More often than not, he does it alone. He’s not doing anything, as a result of he’s supporting and managing me, so he’s busy, so he’s not doing any endurance targets for his biking,” she explains.

They’ll want particular visas to enter and keep in every nation for the time it takes to run throughout it, along with checking out all the different logistics. The planning will occupy all of 2024.

Sufiya Sufi throughout a coaching run in Ladakh, India.

The Future

“Ultrarunning is a brand new sport in India and doesn’t have recognition,” stated Sufi. In consequence, she struggles to seek out sponsorship assist. Generally she does crowdfunding to assist her expeditions. She is presently working to discover a diet sponsor to assist her along with her runs.

She feels that even after she does her around-the-world run, she’ll be nowhere close to near tapping out of her thought pool, both.

“Initially, I didn’t suppose I might run that far. After finishing six expeditions, I nonetheless suppose it’s just the start, and I wish to proceed,” she says.

For now, there’s a marriage ceremony on the horizon for her and Saroha after she runs throughout Qatar a second time. However different life targets? Proper now, she’s principally fascinated by that massive run world wide.

Name for Feedback

• Have you ever adopted Sufiya Sufi’s record-setting working?
• Do you employ working as a option to see the world?
• If there was one nation on this planet you would run throughout, which would it not be?