THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: If you thought 60-plus was the period of retirement blues and medicines, you are wrong. At 68, Captain K A Pillai, a retired Navy officer and a resident of Sasthamangalam, had the chance to beat the nation’s best-ever athlete, the legendary Milkha Singh. Pillai clinched two gold medals in the National Veterans’ Meet held recently at Pondicherry. Pillai’s 100-m relay team beat ‘Flying Sikh’s’ Punjab team. Pillai’s team won gold medals in the 100 m and 400 m relays of veterans of the age group 60-69. “We completed in just 13 seconds, which is on par with the school meet record,” Pillai said. The team participated in the National Veterans’ Meet after a series of successes in district, state and South zone meets. The team will also participate in the World Veterans’ Meet expected to be held during May next year. Pillai’s day starts with a two-hour exercise at the Chandrasekharan Nair Stadium. The exercise begins with a 2-km warm-up run, followed by a workout in the gym. After that, he practises for the events using a stopwatch. The city’s youth turn to this sexagenarian to gather ‘tips’ to be agile and youthful. His training institute at Balaramapuram gives classes for the youth on various exercises, yoga, meditation and nutrition. Pillai also conducts exercise lessons for women employees at Technopark. “Prolonged sitting makes them weak. Most of them have complaints of back and neck aches, which make them unable to work by the time they reach 35 or 40. Now, more and more women are showing interest in the exercise session which is held at noon,” he said. During his stint in foreign lands, Pillai proved his mettle in various sports. While in Norway, he participated in the International Skiing Championship, becoming the first Indian winner in the event. In Singapore, swimming was his forte. He tried his luck in athletics only recently and has gained the Midas touch within a short span of time. Pillai is a former president of the Trivandrum Management Association and is currently serving as the vice-president of the Institute of Personnel Management.
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