Saiyami Kher completes Ironman hat-trick: Trading gels for pizza, electrolytes for tiramisu
Mumbai, Sep 24
Actress and fitness enthusiast Saiyami Kher has completed her third Ironman 70.3, calling it "probably the toughest one yet" after battling travel chaos, scorching heat, jellyfish and a challenging two months leading up to the race in Italy.
She first took on the challenge in 2024 at the Ironman 70.3 in Erkner-Brandenburg, Germany, where she completed the race. She followed it up with her second Ironman 70.3 in Jonkoping, Sweden, in July 2025, becoming the first Indian actress to complete the endurance race twice successfully.
Sharing glimpses from the race, Saiyami said she finished 20 minutes faster than her previous 70.3.
She wrote: "3 x Ironman 70.3. Hattrick done. Probably the toughest one yet. Two rough months leading up to the race. Then there's never any shortage of drama when it comes to me and races. @klm refused us from boarding because of an error from their end, our bike bags hadn't been updated in their system. Hours of calls, uncertainty and stress, just days before the race."
Saiyami shared that she faced a "brutally hot race day".
"We finally made it to Italy, only to be welcomed by 30°C heat. A brutally hot race day, an ocean full of jellyfish, and a body that had already been through a lot. But somewhere between the chaos, the heat and the jellyfish, I found a little more fight."
The actress mentioned: "20 minutes faster than my previous 70.3. That's what I love about this sport. You can't control everything that happens around you. You can only control how you respond. Three 70.3s. Three very different stories. And a whole lot of lessons in between."
She concluded the post by saying: "Hattrick done. Now I'm trading gels for pizza and electrolytes for tiramisu."
Speaking about taking on the challenge for the third time, Saiyami told IANS: "The first Ironman was about discovering whether I could actually do it, and the second one was about understanding what it really takes."
"This time, I felt much more experienced and aware of my body, my training and the demands of the race. I knew it was going to be challenging, but I also knew how much preparation went into it."
The actress added: "Every Ironman taught me something different, and I was looking forward to taking everything I had learnt into Cervia. It felt special to be doing this for the third time, and I was excited to see how far I could push myself this time."
— IANS
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