"Surprise" Moment For India's 'Titanium Man' Who Sailed Around The Globe

Commander Abhilash Tomy (retired), who is one of only two people to complete the world's toughest solo sailing race, had a pleasant surprise while talking to NDTV today. His wife, Urmimala, came on air while he was talking about his experience in participating in the Golden Globe Race 2022.

Commander Tomy said he hasn't seen her in a long time. "The last time we saw each other was when I was in Australia, Tasmania, on a video call," he said, and broke into a smile.

"Thank you so much for doing this," Urmimala told NDTV.

Her husband, who is in France, replied, "Urmimala the name means a string of ocean waves."

The retired Navy Commander finished the non-stop circumnavigation of the globe in a small boat without any electronic aid, after South African sailor Kirsten Neuschafer at 1:30 PM IST in Les Sables d'Olonne, France, today.

Commander Tomy credited his wife for encouraging him to follow his passion, when, according to him, it would have been easy for her to simply ask him to stop going out to the sea after an incident in 2018 that nearly ended his sailing career.

"The thing is it was very easy for Urmi to tell me enough, focus on your family, don't get into this madness again. That's standard, easy. Any Indian woman would have done that. But I think I'm incredibly lucky."

Commander Tomy had to overcome a serious injury five years ago. In 2018, while participating in the same race, he was caught in a violent storm in the Indian Ocean that struck his boat and left him with a broken spine.

In January 2019, Commander Abhilash Tomy quit the Indian Navy to pursue his dream of giving the Golden Globe Race a second shot. It was his life's mission.

"The completion of this race has lifted off a weight from me," he told NDTV today.

He had been on the boat for 236 days. "The boat is a part of my life now. In those days, I kind of repaired many parts of the boat. The mast, the steering, the batteries... I have left a signature on the boat," he said.

It was not an easy ride. He faced dangerous situations from "knockdowns" to severe storms.

Explaining what a "knockdown" is, Commander Tomy said it is a situation when the boat is tilted to such an extreme angle that the mast comes under water and returns. "Technically, it is called a knockdown. But in a small boat it can be called capsize," he told NDTV. "Imagine you live in a house and somebody takes it and shakes it. Inside the boat, the diesel, charts, kitchen, everything flies. Everything is a mess," he said.

He had to use the door handle of the boat's bathroom as a part replacement for a rudimentary self-steering autopilot. "... I ripped off the toilet door and made it a part of the rudder plate of the self-steering system. I also had to remove the anchor and use a part of it in this rudder system," Commander Tomy said, detailing the improvisations he made as the boat started giving up bit by bit during the long, strenuous race. He managed to sail 10,000 miles with this incredible set-up.

"On 26 January, when I wanted to hoist the national flag, a sudden storm not predicted in any of the weather models came and kept building up. I had waves which were at least eight meters high. Two ropes of the self-steering tiller slipped out. I ended up steering the boat continuously for 12 hours. Day turned into night. I couldn't go inside the cabin to turn on the navigation light, see the charts," he said.

The race started on September 4, 2022, from Les Sables-d'Olonne in France, with 16 sailors from 11 countries. Only two of them managed to complete the gruelling challenge while sailing non-stop. This tested their physical and mental stamina to the limit.

The only other finisher so far has been the sailor Simon Curwen, who had been forced to make stops to address problems with his boat, unlike Abhilash Tomy and Kirsten Neuschafer who completed the race non-stop. On account of having to make stops, Mr Curwen was not granted a podium finish.