Nirjala Tamrakar is from Nepal and from 2001 to 2012, she was known as the Mountain Queen, because she was the first female Nepalese Mountain Biking Champion.  She was also the first Nepalese woman to take part in a UCI Mountain Bike World Cup race, in France in 2012 and she’s done the World’s highest endurance event, the Yak Attack. Now in her early 40s, she’s a mum of two, she moved to the UK with her British husband Dan in the middle of lockdown in late 2020. And in 2021, she became the first Nepalese woman to complete an iron distance triathlon, when she did the UK Ultimate Triathlon, in Whitchurch. You'll hear:10:10 Start of the interview with Nirjala, when we hear about her growing up in Kathmandu in Nepal ' I was a bookworm and there wasn't any physical activity to do so I didn't do any physical activity growing up. It was only study, study.'13:00 Nirjala explains who she started to do yoga and how she heard about a bike race and then becoming Nepal Mountain Biking Champion.16:00 The reaction of her friends and family as Nirjala got into Mountain Biking. 'why do you go in the muddy road, what do you get from it?19:34 Nirjala puts some of her success down to her childhood, which involved doing all of the house work. 'We had to do everything by hand. We had to carry water, we had a house made of mud and we had to clean the floor with cow dung. So I was stronger'.25:00 We talk about changing attitudes for mothers in Nepal and how there is more encouragement for women to stay fit and healthy.27:00 Nirjala talks about her 'mixed' feelings when she competed at a UCI World Cup in France33:00 We talk about cycling at high altitude and the side effects of altitude sickness 'even if you are very very fit, you can still struggle with altitude sickness.36:00 Nirjala explains why she didn't quit the 'Yak Attack' Race and the mental struggles she faced and how she kept going. 'when you have no other option, you have to be strong'37:00 Nirjala on overcoming her fear of open water swimming to become the first Nepalese female to complete an iron distance triathlon.44:00 Nirjala's message for the endurance community in Nepal and how the stereotypes have changed. 'All of the men used to say 'you can't do this, when are you quitting?'Find out more about this week's guests Nirjala Tamrakar InstagramLike what you heard?Let me know! Connect with Inside Tri Show across Social Media, just search Inside Tri Show or click on the icons belowSponsors of the showLong Range Fuel are phenomenally tasty nut butters from Resilient Nutrition, enhanced by cutting edge science, to boost your stamina, keep you calm and alert and bolster your resilience. Get 10% off by using the code insidetri10 or go direct via this link.This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices