HYDERABAD: A 54-year-old throwing almost six punches per second seems like a story straight out of the Shaolin temples in China. But M Jayanth Reddy from Hyderabad proved to the world that he is a tough nut to crack when he broke the Guinness World Record for the most number of full— contact punches in a minute using one hand—hitting 352 of them in the process, on July 2.
Reddy’s tryst with world records started in 2010 when he broke the world record for the maximum number of round kicks in a minute. He followed it up with a staggering 10 individual Guinness World Records in martial arts. A taekwondo practitioner since the age of 14, Reddy won five gold medals at national championships from 1983-88.
But fate had something else in store for him. After being unable to crack the Olympic riddle, he shifted his focus to teaching the martial art to youngsters. “I opened my academy in 1996-97 and since then I have taught more than five lakh students,” the eighth Dan Black Belt holder said.
An IPL inspired tournament is Reddy’s ultimate aim. “By November, 2017 we will start International Taekwondo Champions League which will have participants from India, Thailand and the USA,” he said. In a chat with The Sunday Standard, Reddy said his latest world record was the toughest. “In taekwondo, kicks are used 90 per cent of the time. So breaking the one-handed punches world record was really tough.”
His students haven’t been left behind when it comes to smashing world records. “Konda Sahadev, who has been a student of mine for over two decades, has nine world records to his credit, while R Gajendra Kumar and Abdul Khalil have six each,” said Reddy. Nothing seems to be stopping the pentagenarian, who plans to break one more world record in near future.
The third-generation Hyderabad resident has authored two books on healthy lifestyle. “I will identify talented people soon and start training them for the Tokyo Olympics. The country is filled with talent,” Reddy said.
In 2000, my grandfather and my brothers asked me to try breaking world records. I started training soon after.