By Sachin Jose
KOTTAYAM: Son of a naval officer, Lieutenant CommanderAbhilash Tomy lived close to the sea all his life and knew he would be sailing across the oceans one day. Mr Tomy has realised his dream, circumnavigating the globe in a solo, non-stop and unassisted voyage in 151 days, becoming the first Indian to do so.
As a boy, Mr Tomy grew up reading books about ocean adventures. "Also, I had been schooled in six Kendriya Vidyalaya Schools," he recalled, "which moulded me to adjust to an ever-changing environment like the sea."
Mr Tomy considers the turning point in his life that he enrolled in naval aviation instead of engineering or medicine. Aged 34, he is still a bachelor and undecided about marriage. He was inspired by pioneer sailors including the first circumnavigator Bernard Moitissiere and considers India's first solo circumnavigator Commander Dilip Donde his role model.
Mr Tomy is the winner of Kirti Chakra as well as Tenzing Norgay National Award. Regarding the Rs 5 lakh award announced by the Kerala Government last week, he commented it is too late and driven by coming elections.
Passionate about the sailboat INSV Mhadei, Mr Tomy said, "During the voyage she became so much an extension of myself that I would feel worse, if the boat got damaged than if I got hurt."
Apart from sailing, his passion lies in cycling and palmistry. "My only regret is," he said, "that I couldn't master classical guitar as I kept travelling." Being pilot of Dornier recce airplane, Mr Tomy also harbours a desire to circumnavigate the globe by air.
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