Mental Strength is Key to Winning Says World Champion Sailor Homi Motivala
Homi Motivala, left, and Pushpendra Garg with the World Cup, 1993. (c) Homi Motivala
The Global Indian TImes Interview
January 6, 2023
Homi Dady Motivala is one of the most accomplished sports figures in India. In a country which had – and still has – few competitive sailors, he and Pushpendra Garg won the 1993 World Championship in the Enterprise Class of sailboats - which are 13 feet 3 inches long. They are among the three Indian teams who have won the World Championships in Sailing: Farokh Tarapore, in the Enterprise Class in 1991, with Kelly Rao; and in the 420 Class in 2001, with Vikas Kapila; and Cyrus Cama and Amish Ved in the Cadet Class of boats for youths in 1988. Nitin Mongia won a solo championship in the OK Dinghy Class in 2003..
Motivala and Garg also won the Bronze Medal at the 1990 Asian Games in Beijing, China, in 1990, as well as in Hiroshima, Japan, four years later. Motivala, 64-years-old, has won numerous Indian national titles. From 1999 to 2006, he was the chief coach of the National Sailing and Yachting Association of India.
Motivala served as a captain in the Indian Navy from 2004 to 2008, before retiring early. In 1981, he was awarded the Shaurya Chakra, a gallantry award, by the Indian government. This was for acting quickly to prevent a likely second explosion from destroying an Indian Navy vessel, on which he was based, minutes after an explosion partially damaged the vessel while at sea. There were no lives lost.
He joined the Navy as an officer in 1979, after graduating with a Bachelor’s in Applied Science from the National Defense Academy, near Pune. He attended the Bombay Scottish High School in Mumbai.
On the 30th anniversary of his World Cup Win, Motivala, who lives in Mumbai with his wife, talks to Global Indian Times about the importance of a winning attitude, lessons learned from sailing, team work and how he got interested in competitive sailing.
How did Pushpendra Garg and you meet?
Pushpendra was also in the Indian Navy, four years younger than me. We met at a Navy Sailing Competition in 1984. I was 5 feet, 8.5 inches tall and weighed around 63 kg; he was 5’11” and 67 kg. The ideal total weight for a pair competing in the Enterprise Class is around 130 Kg. So, it worked perfectly.
What made you two a winning pair?
We had good personal chemistry and our skills complemented together. We both had a very aggressive physical style of racing, pushing towards the edge of the line between what is legal or illegal. We motivated each other to stretch our physical abilities.
Both of us had a similar attitude on winning and losing. We did not take losses personally and did not take wins too seriously that it went to our heads. Once on the water, we would try to do our best on matters which were under our control.
Did you expect to win the World Championship in 1993?
Sailing competitions are aptly described as playing chess on the water. Only the chess board also keeps changing depending upon the wind and the tides.
We were always figuring out the odds of rival players against us, based on their locations, and accordingly change our location and strategy. We usually did well with more competitors in a race since we were less focused on how our rivals were performing.
We knew we had a good chance at the championship since there were more than 55 teams. They included those who had beaten us to win the gold and silver medals at the 1990 Asian Games, which had only about 15 competitors.
However, the championship was held on Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe. It was a low wind venue and we were not at our best in winds below ten knots. We were very competitive when the wind was anything from 12 to 18 knots as that suited our physical style of sailing.
So how did you end up winning the world title?
Pushpendra and I got to the lake a couple of days early and practiced to become familiar with the patterns of the wind. We used the boat that I had used at the 1990 Asian Games.
During the first race, we started off at number five or six but went on to win. This gave us a lot of confidence in ourselves and in our boat speed. We were in a very positive frame of mind and sailed the series of races with brilliant tactics - even if I say so myself! - to win.
Of course, there is always an element of luck involved in a sport that depends on natural elements and we had our share of lucky breaks. Somehow everything seemed to click into place.
We did not have any coaches, physical trainers, physiotherapists, and psychologists.
Assume it was the highlight of your sports career?
Without a doubt.
What boat did you sail? Where was it made?
We did most of our racing in the International Enterprise class of boat. Up until 1993, we used wooden boats built by Dave Ovington, who was based in Tynemouth, United Kingdom. Dave was a master builder; and we shared a very special relationship and discussed in great detail what we wanted in each boat. In 1994 I switched to a fiberglass boat built by Holt, also in the UK.
Pushpendra Garg, left, and Homi Motiwala. (c) Homi Motivala
Which was tougher, winning the Asian Games Bronze medal in 1990 or 1994?
Every major competition is special and equally tough to win. During the 1990 Asian Games in Beijing, I was disappointed to miss out on the silver medal by a whisker. Khalid Akhtar, a Pakistani member of the jury, who won the gold medal at the 1982 Asian Games, told me: “Don’t ever feel bad when you have won a medal. And don’t ever let anyone make you feel bad about the color of your medal. Only those who have stood on the podium know what it takes to get there!” I have remembered this every day of my life.
In 1989, I suffered a severe back injury with two ruptured spinal discs. One day, at the 1989 Asian Championship, I could not get out of the boat. In 1991, I underwent surgery to remove one of the herniated discs. The surgeon said that surgery on both the injured discs would make my back unstable.
With physical therapy and exercise, I was back to 98% of my strength by the time of the 1993 World Championship. But by the 1994 Asian Games in Hiroshima, I was close to the end of my competitive career. I did not want to risk injuring my back again. I quit after taking part in the 1995 World Championship (at age 37).
How did you first get into sailing?
Since I was a child, I have always been fascinated by water and boats and sailing. I often dragged my parents to the Gateway of India; and we got on the small, creaky, wooden sailing dhows that took passengers for a short trip in Mumbai harbor. I was intrigued that you could just use wind to power a boat.
My brother, who is four years older, joined the Sea Cadet Corps, a youth organization like the scouts. I was curious about the boating and sailing programs in which he participated. He did not take up competitive sailing.
When I was eleven, I too joined the corps, which charged a small nominal fee. Soon after, they introduced sailing in Cadet Class boats - a boat for junior sailors below age 17. When I was around twelve, I went for my first sail on one of these boats.
It must have been expensive for your parents?
Not really – in the early years the boats and gear were provided by the Sea Cadet Corps. I did not get hyper competitive, where you require top level boats and equipment, till I was about 20, by which time I was in the Indian Navy.
The navy was extremely supportive. They covered all the equipment and training costs as well as the costs to travel and take part in competitions.
What made you realize you had the potential to compete at the international level?
I was nowhere near the top during my early competitive years. But I was eager to improve and win major championships. So, in 1983, (at age 25), I asked Commodore Surinder Mongia if I could crew for him. He was also in the navy, 17 years older than me. He won the silver medal at the Asian Games in 1978. I told him I wanted to find out his techniques for winning.
He tested my skills on a few sailing trips and then took me on as a crew member. In 1985, we finished sixth at the Enterprise World Championship in Hongkong. Then, with his support, I decided to compete on my own and sought to qualify for the 1986 Asian games.
By observing Commodore Mongia, I learned that mental strength is what separates the winners from the rest. He planned his strategy for the entire race in advance. What to do when things went right. What to do went things went wrong. He always reacted to mistakes or a bad turn in a race with a positive attitude. He quickly focused on how to fix the problem and try to win.
I realized that every one of the top ten finishers train equally hard and have attained similar levels of skills. It then comes down to confidence and the Skill-Will matrix. Typically, the winners are those who have the skills and the will to win.
Later, as a coach, I saw this very clearly. I found that the results of a race closely matched a sailor’s estimation of where he expected to finish. But I had no easy solutions since most sailors did not want to critically evaluate their performance. It was only when a sailor asked how he could improve that I would tell him: focus on how to win.
How many hours of training did you put in each day?
We would start around 6.30 am with physical training for an hour and a half, alternating between jogging and work out at the gym. We sought to strengthen the thighs and core abdomen muscles and improve stamina.
Around 9 am, after breakfast, we would get to the Navy Sailing Club in Mumbai harbor. Being naval employees, we had some administrative work to finish each day.
During and after lunch, we would go through some theoretical sailing exercises and discuss strategies. I was very lucky to have some outstanding sailors training with me in the navy. Besides Commodore Mongia, there was Farokh Tarapore, Kelly Rao, and Pushpendra. Farokh was by far the most talented Indian sailor. He won two World Championships.
We would then work on the boats and check the equipment. We would sail from around 2.30 pm to 6 pm. Work on the water was divided into boat tuning, drills, and racing. At times I would sail on Farokh’s boat while he would sail mine.
Is the Indian Navy still the biggest source of competitive sailors in India?
My guess is that not anymore, though I am not very current with the information. I stopped coaching when I left the navy in 2008. My rough estimate is that the numbers today would be equally split between the army, navy, and civilians.
India has a long coast line. But sailing is not a popular sport, given the expense. Has it expanded beyond Mumbai?
It is true that sailing is not very popular in India and no doubt that cost is a major factor. However, the number of sailors has grown a lot in the past two decades. Most sailboat racing programs are supported by company sponsors.
Besides Mumbai, Chennai, Bhopal and Hyderabad are major hubs for competitive dinghy racing. Chennai ran a very successful program for junior sailors and some of them went on to represent India at the Olympics.
The National Sailing School at Bhopal also runs a very successful program. At the Yacht Club of Hyderabad, Commodore M.R. Suheim Sheikh runs a program for underprivileged children which covers their education, diet, and coaching. Some of his students have represented India at international competitions.
What lessons did sailing teach you?
It taught me lessons for life: independence; dealing with adversity; accepting the good and the bad; stop looking back at what might have been and look ahead to the future; and humility.
Do you still sail every day?
I am a founding member of the Bombay Merchants Cup, which promotes sailboat racing in large keel boats. We run races every Saturday in the Mumbai harbor. I am also a part owner of a 50 feet boat that we sail in the races. I sail only for pleasure and race for fun, though my fellow sailors would disagree.
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(c) Global Indian Times under U.S. copyright laws. Prior written permission required to publish any part of the content. Photos (c) Homi Motivala.
