This December, adventurer Ananya Prasad is taking on the “world’s toughest row” across the Atlantic Ocean, solo and unassisted, which would make her the first woman of colour to complete the feat. Born in India and raised in UK from the age of five, Prasad is the only woman among the six solo contestants taking part in this year’s row. She will be taking off on the adventure in her specially built boat, which she has named the Atlantic Odysseus.
In this exclusive interview, the British Indian talks to iGlobal about the challenges that lie ahead, the elaborate preparations and what motivated her to take on this massive challenge.
Can you tell us about your upcoming row across the Atlantic Ocean?
I'm a solo participant in an annual event called the World's Toughest Row. It's a challenge where teams of more than one person, or solo rowers, row 3,000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean from the Canary Islands to Antigua in the Caribbean. As a solo rower, it should take approximately about 60 days, but maybe a couple of weeks either side of it.
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What is the preparation like leading up to it?
Preparing for this journey has been a long process—I signed up almost three and a half years ago. Many people assume it’s just about rowing, and while that’s a big part of it, there’s so much more involved. Preparation includes navigation and radio safety training, learning how the boat moves, and spending significant time on it to understand how to survive and thrive during the 60-day expedition.
Physically, most of my training is endurance-based, with hours on the rowing machine. I also do strength training and weightlifting with a personal trainer to build overall resilience.
Technically, I’ve undergone extensive training to understand the boat inside and out—it's a seven-metre vessel, and I need to be able to repair anything that goes wrong, from fixing the water maker to handling electrical issues. This has involved navigation, safety, and repair courses.
Mentally, the focus is on staying calm under pressure and preparing for the inevitable highs and lows, including moments of fear and isolation. I’ve worked on strategies to stay motivated, even on the toughest days when rowing feels like the last thing I want to do.
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What motivated you to take this on?
I first heard about ocean rowing in 2018. At the time, I had no experience with ocean-based sports or nautical adventures, but I’ve always loved the outdoors—hiking, climbing, and trying new activities. Ocean rowing appealed to me as a completely new challenge and an opportunity to explore a different environment while learning something new.
What draws me to adventure sports, including ocean rowing, is their ability to teach resilience. They push you to confront difficulties, face fears, and solve problems - lessons that are valuable in all aspects of life.
I’m also excited about the unique experiences the ocean offers: seeing the night sky without light pollution, and encountering wildlife like dolphins, whales, and turtles in their natural habitat. It’s a rare opportunity to connect with nature in such an extraordinary way.
Adventures like this are also a great opportunity to raise awareness for causes I’m passionate about. With this row, I'm fundraising for two charities, one in India, called Deenabandhu Trust, and one in the UK, called The Mental Health Foundation.
Deenabandhu Trust, which started off as children’s home and is now a school with scholarship programmes, supports children who come from destitute backgrounds. So many people they have supported have gone onto become engineers, doctors and social workers.
And The Mental Health Foundation is an organisation that researches mental health, focusing around prevention of ill mental health, which, looking at the rates of mental health since COVID I think is a really, really big issue.
*Info: Ananya Prasad