Sailor Abhilash Tomy has a ‘back of steel’
NEWDELHI: Champion sailor Commander Abhilash Tomy underwent a surgery at an army hospital here on Thursday for a back injury he suffered while negotiating a deadly storm in the southern Indian Ocean that left his yacht crippled three weeks ago.
Air Commodore MS Sridhar, the military’s senior-most neuro surgeon, fixed Tomy’s back in a two-hour procedure, the navy said in a tweet. The 39-year-old is recovering well from the surgery, with his sense of humour intact. “This naval legend @abhilashtomy now has a back of steel. The Docs r totally floored by the resolve and determination of Abhilash. Also compliment his sense of humour. Wish you a super speedy recovery sailor boy,” navy spokesperson Captain DK Sharma tweeted. Sharma met him at the hospital.
“Platinum sir. My value has just gone up,” Tomy responded on Twitter. Navy chief Admiral Sunil Lanba met Tomy after the surgery and wished him speedy recovery. Indian warship INS Satpura reached Vizag with Tomy onboard on October 5. It picked him up from from Île Amsterdam, a remote island in the southern Indian Ocean where he was undergoing treatment. Before being moved to Delhi for the surgery, Tomy was being treated at naval hospital INHS Kalyani. He was participating in this year’s Golden Globe Race (GGR), a circumnavigation challenge involving solo participants, and which bars the use of modern technology.