Amar Subba, Marathon Man of Sikkim, on How he is Preparing for Staircase Run

Sitting in a room with a splendid view of the highest peak in India, and third highest in the world, Kanchenjunga, Amar Subba shares his journey full of challenges and difficulties and why he is called the Marathon Man. He is staying in Darap village which is 6 kms from Pelling, a famous tourist place. 

He started running after crossing the age of 40 and did his first marathon after 41 years of age.  Amar shares that in his life he has done many commendable things but didn’t get credit and recognition for the same. When he started running, he straightaway aimed for a 42.1 kms distance, giving himself the challenge. After successfully completing his first marathon, he wanted to tap the maximum of his potential. He was featured in Limca Book of Records 2012 for successfully completing a Solo 440 km Marathon along the foothills of the Himalayas and areas such as Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Siliguri and Dooars in 7 days. Since then, he has been known as Marathon Man of Sikkim. 

“Passion, discipline and dedication are very important in running. Struggling is part of life and any criticism should work as a building block.”

In May 201, he spearheaded a charity run in aid of Bandana Subba, a 21-year-old student from Gangtok, to help raise funds for his leukemia treatment. Amar Subba wishes to make his country, village, and community proud.  

Toughest Races

• First race - Since the run was in the Himalayas and he wasn’t aware of the technicalities at the time, Amar faced many difficulties. But everyone - his family, friends, villagers - supported him.  
• “Spiritual Run and Tenzing Hillary Everest Marathon in Nepal was the toughest marathon of my life.” He covered the long distance of 300 km held in May.
• He bagged fourth position in a 24-hr stadium run held in Mumbai in 2021, covering a distance of 159.2 km. 

Amar Subba saw a post on FB by Sportiz about the JBG Westin33 - The Sky Run which luckily he can attend this year. He was also invited by Nishant Maheshwari, Director of Sportiz, and Sharddha Mehta to participate in the run. For the Sky Run, he practice in the hills, where there are 70-80 stairs to make his muscles strong. He is participating in the event with an ambition to run 1056 stairs in 20 minutes. 

“To move forward in life, one must accept challenge, overcome it and become an inspiration for others.”