MMA Honours Asian Games Medallist Vithya Ramraj, Celebrating Resilience, Discipline & Peak Performance

Chennai: Madras Management Association (MMA), in association with TimeLinks and Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, hosted “Beyond the Hurdles – The Champion’s Mindset for Leadership Excellence” at the MMA Management Center, Chennai, honouring Indian Olympian and Asian Games medallist Ms Vithya Ramraj. 

The highlight was an inspiring conversation between Vithya and Indian table tennis legend and Padma Shri awardee Mr Achanta Sharath Kamal, exploring the mindset, discipline and resilience behind sustained excellence in sport and their relevance to leadership and management.

At the recently concluded Asian Games in Nagoya, Vithya Ramraj clocked 54.75 seconds in the women’s 400m hurdles, setting a new Indian national record and surpassing the benchmark established by P. T. Usha at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. She also won Gold in the women’s 4×400m relay, Silver in the mixed 4×400m relay and Bronze in the 400m hurdles. 

Sharing her journey, Vithya spoke about disciplined preparation, family support, coaching, setbacks and the importance of incremental improvement. Achanta Sharath Kamal highlighted that champions are defined not only by medals but by their ability to overcome setbacks, perform under pressure, adapt and continuously raise their own benchmarks.

Welcoming the gathering, Mr A R Unnikrishnan, President, MMA and Managing Director, Saint-Gobain India Pvt Ltd – Glass Business, said Vithya’s journey offers powerful lessons in discipline, resilience, teamwork and commitment to long-term goals. Ms Chitra Sivakumar, Managing Partner, TimeLinks, emphasised the importance of the ecosystem of family, coaches, mentors and support systems in nurturing excellence. 

Gp Capt R Vijayakumar (Retd), VSM, Executive Director, MMA, praised Vithya’s journey from Coimbatore to the international stage, noting the role of perseverance, her family, twin sister Nithya and coaches in her success. 

The programme also explored marginal gains, data-driven coaching, mental strength, team responsibility and setting new goals after major achievements, before concluding with an interactive session and felicitation of Ms Vithya Ramraj.

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