Marathon racer overcomes brain tumour surgery to be podium finisher

Sportspersons in India often have to struggle for many reasons to be successful in their career. Marathon racer Shyamali Singh’s story is even more inspiring.

Shyamali, who is a resident of Kolkata, had to undergo a 12-hour surgery to remove a brain tumour in December 2020. However, she was determined to overcome the pain and struggle. She finally overcame her hardship to come up with flying colours.

With a timing of 03:04:35, Shyamali won bronze medal among Indian women at the Mumbai Marathon on Sunday.

Shyamali’s tough journey is a story of determination, grit, and refusal to give up. In 2017, she had an operation to remove a non-malignant tumor in her chest. She fought that bravely eventually to return to racing. However, she hit a roadblock again in 2020. This time she didn’t know if she would survive.

The marathon racer had a similar feeling again before she found out about the tumour in her chest and feared it has reoccured. Unfortunately this time, it was even worse.

When her husband and coach took her to the hospital, and the doctor saw that she was a national runner, he refused to operate fearing that it could be fatal.

However, they took the risk getting her operated at a local hospital with inexperienced doctors. It was a huge ask financially. Though they approached everybody, they didn’t get any financial help. They had no option but to sell their house and use up their entire savings.

In November 2021, 11 months after the surgery, she was able to run a bit on the road for the first time. She ran short distances in 2022 and it was only last year that she managed to complete a marathon which was held in Assam. She did try to run the Mumbai Marathon last year too but couldn’t go beyond the 20km mark. 

“So completing Mumbai Marathon this year and finishing on the podium is a real victory for me,” said Shyamali.