“I Called My Mother”: Kashmir’s Guinness World Record Holder Cyclist Adil Teli Revealed How His Mother Motivated Him to Keep Going Despite Injuries
Growing up in the breathtaking landscapes of Kashmir valley, Adil Teli of the Narabal area in Budgam found his happiness in cycling on challenging roads and terrains. Hailing from a modest background, Teli’s determination, perseverance, and steadfastness pushed his limits and encouraged him to achieve greater things in the field of cycling.
Taking cycling as his career, Teli became the first Kashmiri to become the Guinness World Record holder, not once but twice.
Teli’s first Guinness World Record came in 2021 when he cycled from Kashmir to Kanyakumari enduring countless challenges in the process. His mother played an important role in motivating him, overcoming his struggles, and achieving this enormous feat.
“You don’t have to leave it but beat it”
On 22nd March 2021, as rain poured down on the plains of Srinagar City, Adil Teli started his journey from Kashmir to Kanyakumari – a staggering distance of 3600 km. Aware of Teli’s journey, the Jammu and Kashmir administrations had opened the new tunnel joining Qazigund to Banihal, especially for Teli.
Due to bad weather, Teli witnessed frequent landslides making his journey through Jammu and Kashmir highway a life-threatening experience. It wasn’t until reaching New Delhi that the skies finally cleared but it came at its own cost. The temperature soared to about 41 degrees Celsius, resulting in blisters on his skin and numerous sunburns.
In an interview with Taarukk, Teli recalls that he wanted to quit on Day 7 of the journey due to excessive pain. He called his mother at 2.30 am in the midnight and talked about him wanting to quit but his mother encouraged him to finish the journey.
” Don’t let so much of your efforts go in vain. The whole nation is watching you, praising you and you are making us so proud. You don’t have to leave it but beat it.” Teli’s mother said via phonecall
“You are doing it. You have beat the Guinness World Record,” she added.
Teli recalled his knees started to swell and he took a few painkillers and continued on his journey to Kanyakumari. He finished his journey on the morning of Day 8 and creating the Guinness World Record was all he could think of. He was live on Facebook and about 20-30K people were watching him when he finished the journey.
“Alhamdulillah, I broke the Guinness World Record with a good margin”, Teli said while speaking to Taarukk.
After finishing his journey, Teli stayed in the hospital for about 4 hours, and after reaching home he got a resounding welcome from family, friends, and other well-wishers.
Adil Teli Career Achievements
Having initially taken up an interest in cricket, Teli developed a love for cycling since his school days. His first participation in a national event came at the MTB Nationals in Kerala where he finished 7th. In 2015, he started representing Jammu and Kashmir at various national level events and made a name for himself.
He has also represented the University of Kashmir for three years. In 2019, Teli participated in non-stop cycling between Srinagar to Leh and covered a distance of 40 km in 26 hours.
After his first Guinness World record of Kashmir to Kanyakumari in 2021, Teli followed it with another in 2022. He achieved the record for the fastest cycle journey on the Manali-Leh highway completing the feat in 29 hours 18 minutes and 21 seconds from 11 September 2022 to 12 September 2022.
Adil Teli’s success story is a testament to the idea that with hard work and commitment, dreams can be conquered. His success brings pride to Kashmir and motivates youngsters to follow their passions.
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Mohd Faisal Hakak is a sports author from Kashmir. He likes to keep tabs on the sporting world with a keen interest in football, motorsports, NBA, and other marquee sports. He is a science graduate from Islamia College Srinagar.
