Daijiworld Media Network - Hyderabad
Hyderabad, Dec 2: In an extraordinary triumph of discipline and conviction, 49-year-old Hyderabad bodybuilder Karunnapan Venkatesan has won gold at the Natural Mr World Championship held in Los Angeles — competing entirely vegan, without supplements, steroids, or even milk.
For Venkatesan, the victory was less about the spotlight and more about proving a point: that strength rooted in purity and patience can outshine shortcuts. But the road to gold was far from smooth.
Upon landing in the US, immigration authorities confiscated all the homemade food he had carried from India. “I didn’t eat for 24 hours before the competition,” he recalled. The impact was immediate — no muscle pump, fatigue, and drowsiness. “My body was not cooperating. But I told myself this is the real test. The mind must control the body,” he said. Fighting jet lag and exhaustion, he stepped on stage and walked away with gold.
What makes his achievement remarkable is the ethical rigour behind it. Competing under the strict drug-free standards of the International Natural Bodybuilding Association (INBA), Venkatesan follows a fully vegan lifestyle. “Everybody said it’s impossible. They told me at least drink milk. But I don’t want to hurt any living being. I don’t take milk, supplements, or drugs. Win or lose, my conscience must be clean,” he said.
His training is a blend of gym workouts, yoga, pranayama and meditation — practices he considers the foundation of real health. “Yoga and pranayama balance organs, hormones and mind,” he said.
Venkatesan’s gold follows a silver he won in the previous edition of the championship. He also became the only Indian to medal at the INBA Mr Olympia in Las Vegas, clinching bronze against competitors from 16 countries. “Many competitions, many people win. I didn’t get medals every time. So patiently wait, wait, wait,” he said.
Yet he insists that medals fade. “Placement is not permanent — whether first, second or third. The lifelong win is when you love yourself and keep your health,” he said.
He worries modern lifestyles are pushing people toward disease. “Everything is about convenience now. People eat more, work less. Health suffers. We must return to natural food, movement and discipline,” he said. Traditional Indian practices, he believes, hold the key. “Our culture — yoga, pranayama, meditation — keeps the body young. My body age is 21,” he laughed.
His ambition stretches beyond typical sporting boundaries: “My goal is to be world champion even when I reach 100 years,” he said. Not for records, but to show that health can be lifelong.
As he summed up his journey and philosophy, Venkatesan offered the message that guides him: “Winning or failing is secondary. What matters is your path and how you treat your body. Love yourself — that is the real victory.”