This month (February 2024), Dr Umesh Bhammarkar from Hyderabad ran one of the most difficult marathons. He ran on the frozen Pangong Lake (world’s highest saltwater lake) in Leh Ladakh. The lake is located at an altitude of 14,272 feet and around 120 athletes from around the world participated in this marathon organised by Adventure Sports Foundation of Ladakh with the support of the Administration Union Territory of Ladakh and 14 corps of the Indian Army.
The World’s Highest Frozen Lake Marathon-2024 is officially registered in the Guinness Book of World Records. Even though Bhammarkar had signed up for the full marathon (42 kilometres), a change in climatic conditions on the day of the run with the wind velocity going up, saw the organisers restricting the run to 21 kilometres. Bhammarkar completed the run in over three hours and is back in the city and his clinic. “All the runners who signed for 42kilometers had to do 21 kilometeres on the advice of the organisers.
Having run the second edition of this marathon, the marathoner says he ran almost all hills in the Hyderabad and spent an average of two to three hours at Snow World (an artificial snow theme park) to get a feel of minus temperatures. Apart from adding layers of clothing to keep warm, runners wear shoes with a special attachment to the sole to avoid skidding. His preparation involved a lot of strength, plyometric, resistance and functional training.
