Small and strong

She is short, weighs but 35 kg and will be 71 this December, as per her own declaration. "I do things at my own speed,” Lily Khan told Parsiana on the phone from her home in Calcutta. And ‘her own speed’ was enough to fetch the determined athlete three gold medals at the Sri Lanka Masters Athletics 27th Annual (Open) Championships from August 2 to 4, 2013. Competing in the 70+ category, Khan won in the five km walk, 800 m and 200 m run. A month earlier, representing West Bengal, she had won a silver medal in the 1,500 m run at the 34th National Masters Athletic Championships 2013 in Bangalore and placed fourth in the five km walk.
"I prefer the longer distances to short bursts of speed as I have G6PD (this is not an established side effect of the G6PD enzyme deficiency — editors). I have suffered a traumatic experience (by going too fast). My body cannot take a hard workout,” she explains. Around six months prior to a competition, she starts gradually with gentle exercises, yoga and walks in the garden. She has been participating in national level veteran athletic meets since the ‘young’ age of 45! Being a premature baby did not prevent her from playing various games since her school days and she has represented the Calcutta Parsee Club in women’s basketball and hockey at the club level.

"My father Jehanbax Kapadia took to running when he was 78! He could do 100 m and 200 m even when he was 90,” she relates. "Kapadia won three silver medals in the World Veterans’ Athletic Championships in Durban, South Africa in 1997 in the 100 m, 200 m and 400 m in the age group 90-94. Despite a heart attack, he continues to be active enough to want to participate at the next World Veterans Championships,” the Calcutta Parsee Club had acknowledged Kapadia’s rare achievement in its Millennium 2000 edition.
"Since 1987, Khan has been participating in state and national veterans’ athletic championships and at international meets held at Hong Kong and Malaysia, winning gold, silver and bronze. Her forte is the five km and 10 km walk and 800 m, 1,500 m and 5,000 m run. Recently at the 21st National Veteran Athletic Championship held at New Delhi, she bagged three golds… She had been selected to represent India at the Asian Veterans’ Championships on four occasions but was not able to attend due to lack of sponsorship,” the Millennium 2000 edition added.
"Things have become much more expensive now and sponsorships are hard to come by,” says Khan who retired from Calcutta’s well-known company Eveready in the year 2000 on attaining the age of 58. Husband Maneck has passed away; son Viraf lives in Hong Kong with his wife Sue Wong and seven-year-old daughter Delna who enjoys gymnastics. "Yes, definitely they are supportive, but they tell me to do only as much as I comfortably can,” she adds. "Earlier we always had Parsis (from different places in India) participating in veteran athletics, unfortunately we hardly see Parsi names now.” Khan is sanguine that companies and trusts will come forward to lend sponsorship support. "Athletics keeps me fit. I have had my share of illnesses but I will continue as long as I keep well and feel good about running.”