Olympians Jinson Johnson and Anish Bhanwala will headline the 63rd edition of the Fit India Sundays on Cycle event to be held on March 1 across multiple locations in the country.
Jinson Johnson, who represented India at the 2016 Olympics and holds the national record in the 1500m (3:35.24), will participate in the cycling event at RK Beach in Visakhapatnam.
Johnson won gold in the 1500m and silver in the 800m at the 2018 Asian Games. He also secured a silver medal in the 1500m at the 2022 Asian Games, establishing himself as one of India’s leading middle-distance runners.
In New Delhi, Olympian and 2018 Commonwealth Games gold medallist in the 25m rapid fire pistol, Anish Bhanwala, will join the cycling event at the Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee Swimming Pool Complex. The event is being organised in collaboration with the Fire and Emergency Departments under the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Bhanwala is also a silver medallist in the Mixed Team event at the 2022 ISSF World Championships in Cairo and claimed a silver medal at the 2025 Cairo Championships. He won a bronze medal in the team event at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou.
Accomplished fencer Taniksha Khatri will also take part in the Delhi event. She reached the quarterfinals at the 2022 Asian Games, marking India’s best-ever performance in the Épée category. They will be joined by Fit India ambassador Nancy and wellness coach Akanksha Tagotra.
Launched in December 2024 by Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports Mansukh Mandaviya, Fit India Sundays on Cycle has evolved into a large-scale public fitness initiative, with participation from over 2.5 crore citizens across more than 2.5 lakh locations nationwide.
The campaign is part of the broader Fit India Movement, launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 29, 2019, with the aim of making fitness a daily habit and encouraging active lifestyles.
The weekly cycling initiative is organised by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in collaboration with the Sports Authority of India and partner organisations, including the Cycling Federation of India, Mallakhamb Association, Kudo Association, NaMo Cycling Clubs, Indian Rope Skipping Federation, My Bharat and Yogasana Bharat.
The event will take place simultaneously across all States and Union Territories, including SAI Regional Centres, National Centres of Excellence, SAI Training Centres, Khelo India State Centres of Excellence and Khelo India Centres.
Parallel activities such as yoga sessions, rope skipping demonstrations, Kudo martial arts displays and cultural performances will accompany the cycling drive, turning it into a broader fitness outreach programme. With the dual themes of #FightObesity and #PollutionKaSolution, the initiative aims to promote cycling as a sustainable and accessible mode of staying active.
— IANS
