Milind Soman ‘Ironman Triathlon’ Running Barefoot Across The Country For Awakening Women
Remember the robust prince coming out of a box in Alisha Chinai’s music video called Made in India (1995)? Yes, it is probably the first time we saw Milind Soman on screen and he grabbed millions of eyeballs. No doubt that he became the Prince Charming for every woman. One Indian celebrity who made us want to add the word ‘hot’ to our dictionary to describe (and, unwittingly, objectify) humans, it would be Milind Soman. Back in the 90s we loved everything that had Milind Soman in it. We may have had Tom Cruise, but Milind was our own homegrown, Greek-God-gorgeous, rockstar.
If Hollywood has George Clooney, we have Milind filling the desi salt and pepper spot with perfection. We love you, Milind! May you always be your sublime, hot, charming, and determined self.
1. Milind Soman was born in a Maharashtrian family in Scotland and thereafter he lived in England until the age of seven. After that, his family moved back to India. His father Prabhakar Soman, is a scientist and his mother is a biochemist, who taught at Wilson College.
2. Milind Soman has always been interested in doing activities that can keep him fit. At a young age, he showed lots of interest in swimming and because of his efforts, he has won the national swimming championship title for 4 years in a row since 1984. He quickly engaged with the modelling and Bollywood world, and made a name for himself.
3. There was a point in his life when he used to smoke 30 cigarettes a day! However, when he realised that he was addicted, he quit smoking. It took him six long months to quit the butt, after which he can’t even passive smoke.
4. Milind Soman, on May 20, 2012, became a Limca Record Book record holder for running 1,500 km in 30 days for Greenathon. This event was hosted by NDTV to spread environmental awareness across the country.
5. Milind Soman is also involved in activities that can support women to take up fitness and a healthy lifestyle to a new level. He was involved as a very active member in Pinkathon marathon that was held for a cause of breast cancer across the country.
6. You will be proud to know that Milind Soman won the Ironman Triathlon competition in which 2000 people were participating from different parts of the world. He was amongst the 7 Indians. The competition was arranged by World Triathlon Corporation, which includes a 3.8 km swim, 180.2 km cycle ride and 42.2 km run. Soman completed the challenge in 15 hours and 19 minutes and won the title.
7. As most of us prefer different types of shoes for different workout, Milind Soman likes to keep it simple by running barefoot. According to him, barefoot running gives him the best feel of running.
8. Milind Soman started running half-marathons at the age of 38, which is not a young age for running. He then advanced to running full marathons, and then at the age of 50, he took over the triathlon. He took charge of his health after 40 and proves that it’s never too late to start living a healthy life.
9. The reason behind this supermodel turns into a runner from every corner of India is Soman wants to see Indian women start running for their health. No superstar till date has supported a cause that talks about the well-being of Indian women. The supermodel organises Pinkathon, a running event only for women.
10. These days Soman is accompanied by his 76 years old mother Usha Soman. According to a video which got viral showing on the penultimate day of the The Great India Run (which concludes on August 4) near the Manor, a district near Thane. Within a day of being posted, it was viewed nearly 350,000 times, with close to 5,000 shares. And the numbers are going up as we type.