76-year-old athlete from Kerala wins seven medals at Open Masters Games Abu Dhabi

76-year-old Kurian Jacob from Kerala triumphs with seven medals, including five golds, at the Open Masters Games in Abu Dhabi.

With seven medals, including five golds, at the recent Open Masters Games Abu Dhabi, it is hard to believe Kurian Jacob took up swimming seriously at 70. “I might have started swimming before I started walking,” says Kurian who competed in the 75-79 years old category.

“I was one of 10 children, and I might have been in water a lot, playing in the tributary of the Meenachil River with my older siblings,” he says of his childhood at Thidanadu, which lies between Kanjirapally and Erattupetta, which he believes might have contributed to his penchant for swimming. 

Kurian came back empty-handed from his first Kerala State and Inter-State Seniors Athletics championships in 2019, but two years later, he won his first gold medal at the Inter-State Seniors meet. What happened in the intervening two years led Kurian to that medal and subsequent golds at other competitions. 

“I took to YouTube to hone my skills. I watched videos to learn more. Public pools were closed at the time. However, in 2021, when the pools re-opened I started swimming again. That is how I got better at it.” Even today, he trains at the Yacht Club swimming pool in Kochi. He swims for almost two hours, at least six days a week, covering three kilometres in the 25 metres pool. 

Over the past five years, he has won 119 medals at various national and international sports meets, the latest medal haul being at Abu Dhabi games. Kurian participated at his first international competition, the European Masters’ Games (EMG) in 2023, in Finland, where he won five medals — three silver and two gold. There has been no looking back for him since then. 

In 2024, he participated in the Pan American Masters Games held in Cleveland, USA. He bagged two golds, a silver and a bronze medal. Last year he bagged nine medals at Taipei, at the World Masters Games, which is held once in four years. Open Masters Games is an annual event.