A new star on the horizon

Here is a young 23-year-old youngster from the city who walked out of a well-paying job in the corporate world so that he could pursue his passion that takes him far away from boardrooms and keyboards. ‘They were becoming tedious. The monotony was almost killing my quest for glory in a different field,’ declares Parashuram Chenji, who opted to make a career in the exciting, but ruthlessly competitive, world of cycling.

A B.Com (Hons) graduate from Delhi University, Parashuram, is on cloud nine these past few days. His journey, despite the bumpy ride and rough terrains in the initial stages, is blossoming in the nick of the moment and paying handsome dividends. He hit the headlines after he brought home a silver medal in the grueling 120kms National Road Cycling Championship in Mass Start for Under-23 Men held last week at Aligarh. Quite significantly, this was the first instance in almost 25 years that a medal from the prestigious event was coming to the Telugu-speaking region.

“Indeed, it feels great that I could put Hyderabad on the national canvas, all over again. What comes as a morale-booster is that in the previous edition I had finished sixth in the age-group competition while it was an envious ninth in the senior category,” exudes the youngster, whose moorings were at Hyderabad Racing League (HRL), which is run by his father Arvind Chenji.

Retracing his forays into the world of competitive cycling, he points out “during my school days, similar to my peers, I was into all kinds of sports. Interest for cycling, in a way, happened by chance, and that too rather unexpectedly. When I jumped onto the corporate bandwagon, cycling to the office was my preferred transportation mode. Every day, I used to cycle to office and back, which, over a period of time, kindled a passion for it to the extent that I nurtured ambitions of taking it up as a career option. With my dad encouraging me to make the move, I began training on a serious note”.

Having taken a liking for the sport and with ambitions of pedalling away to glory on every stretch, he hit the road, quite literally. “After training, I began participating in many local races in Hyderabad, where I could compete with many national-level cyclists and prove my mettle. I won medals but more than that I got to train along with national players. I would cycle all the way to Medchal in order to get a feel of the Highways. My elders were so impressed with my dedication and latent talent that I was able to undergo two-month training in Belgium, which helped me see the competition prevailing at the international level. That exposure has bolstered my preparations,” avers Parashuram.

However, he is yet to overcome the problem that looms on the economic front. Cycles at that level come at a premium. Moreover, for one to go for a customised bike involves exorbitant costs and that is something his elders are not able to cope up with, particularly given the advancements that keep happening the world-over, on almost a regular basis. For one who is keen to prove that the recent epoch-making achievement was no flash of brilliance, Parashuram is eyeing an encore in the 100kms race in the Garden City come Saturday.

For the moment, Parashuram Chenji is the new star on the cycling horizon. One fervently hopes that either the sports-friendly State Government or a Good Samaritan will come forward with sponsorships so that the gifted cyclist would be on the right track for cornering glory. At the end of the day, it is Telangana State that stands to gain from the achievements of the promising son of the soil.

By Aneri Shah