Aditi Krishnan has been fascinated with bike racing since childhood and it was her father who fueled her passion into breaking the stereotype to be a professional bike racer.

“In grade 1, when my teacher asked us what we wanted to be, I proudly announced– ‘Bike racer!’ and my classmates said, ‘But it’s a sport for guys!’

I was confused, so that day I asked dad, ‘Is racing only for boys?’ and he said, ‘No, girls can be anything they want to be!’

So at 14, dad started training me to become a racer. I’ve been obsessed with bikes since I was 3 and when I saw him race, I just knew I had to be on the track. So we began training every weekend and by the end of it, one of the instructors told us there was a race coming up and that I could participate!

But 2 days before I had an accident and broke my finger. As the doctor tied the cast, mom and dad asked, ‘Should we go back home?’ I don’t know what came over me, but I said, ‘No. I have to do this.’

And I’m so glad I did. I came second in the Rookie Cup and got selected to go to Spain to compete! Mom and dad were so proud, they couldn’t stop gushing about.

In Spain, I didn’t make it to the next round, but dad comforted me with, ‘We’ll work harder and come back next year.’

During this time, my friends and teachers were so supportive! My friends shared their notes and my professors explained concepts separately when I was absent.

I continued to train; I was determined to make it back to Spain. I’d go to the track every weekend for 6 hours and joined a gym on weekdays to keep up my fitness. I’d wake up at 7, attend school till 4, study until 6:30, after which dad and I would work out for an hour and a half.

A few months back, I even participated in 2 National races. I didn’t expect anything out of it but just wanted to give it a shot. So when I came 4th, competing with 55 adults, my heart was thumping– I felt like I could do anything.

I’ve only been racing for 2 years, but I’ve learnt so much. When I was younger, some people said, ‘Girls can’t race’, but dad just told me to ignore them. Ever since, I’ve participated in 2 national races, 1 international Rookie Cup and am training to become the next National Champion!

Dad always says – ‘Do whatever you want.’ “And that’s what I love the most about him– he’s raised me to believe that I can do anything; no questions asked.” 

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