By Anjali Nauriyal
New Delhi, 17 May: Well-known show jumper and equestrian eventer, Col Sudhir Singh Ahlawat (Retd), who has the unique distinction of being the only Indian on the board of the Asian Equestrian Federation, is on his way to Jakarta for the Indonesian Equestrian Championships.
Col Ahlawat is Chair of the group comprising 11 Asian countries: Brunei, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia, Sri Lanka and Nepal.
With his fervent passion, unswerving dedication and hard work over the decades, Col Ahlawat has added many feathers to his cap: he has been National Champion, served as Secretary General of the Equestrian Federation of India, and represented India in the Asian Games and innumerable international events winning the bronze at the Euro-Asia Cup.
With countless medals to his credit, he retired from the Indian Army after 33 years of illustrious service. He is now judge of international equestrian events, and travels widely in India and the world, be it Belarus, England, France, Spain, Italy and the Asian countries, of course.
With his four year term with the AEF now coming to an end, he says, “I am a soldier and an athlete. I come from a long line of soldiers. To serve my country and see it achieve great heights has been my mission always. Jai Hind.”
Indeed, he has distinguished himself both as an army man and as an athlete.
Col Sudhir Singh Ahlawat (Vishisht Sewa Medal) is the first Indian to have been appointed to the Asian Equestrian Federation as Chair of Group III with 11 of the 35 Asian countries under his chairmanship. At the end of his term, he is on his way now to Jakarta, Indonesia, for their Equestrian Championships, as a board member of the AEF.
Show jumper, eventer, course designer and judge, he has been National Champion and won innumerable medals in India and abroad including the bronze in the Euro-Asia Cup. He has represented India in the Asian Games and many other International competitions.
He also served as Secretary General of the Equestrian Federation of India. He retired from the army in 2017 after 33 years of illustrious service. Currently he is an international judge of equestrian events and travels widely in India and abroad in this regard.
