Many dream of achieving greatness, but few have what it takes to be ‘Officially Amazing’…
Enter 37-year-old Omkar Palav, who has made history in perhaps the most unlikely way possible: by typing the alphabet with his nose!
Palav has seized the Guinness World Record for ‘Fastest Time Typing the Alphabet With His Nose’, hammering out A to Z with a space in between each letter in an impressive 20 seconds and 51 milliseconds.
Of course, he’s aware of how funny that sounds.
“I want people to enjoy; I don’t mind, even if people laugh. It’s an achievement, even if people laugh at something I’ve done…laughter is the best medicine,” he says.
He’s since been dubbed the ‘Typing Man of Australia’, and is already planning his next challenges, which include typing the alphabet with his pinkies, and memorising the first 100 digits of Pi.
“It’s a huge responsibility that I have to maintain. It doesn’t stop here…my goal is to try to break my own record in the future,” he says.
Unlike many World Record attempters, Omkar Palav is completely self-funded, with no sponsors or team behind him. To ratify his attempt in July, he had to employ a videographer, professional timekeepers from Athletics SA and independent witnesses, before sending the footage to the Guinness World Records board to analyse, a process which can take up to three months.
“It took me a lot of effort to find these people; apart from my day-to-day routine and practicing, I had to find these people and explain what I was doing to them, convince them to get involved,” he says.
Revering Virat Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar as a child, Palav says he’s long aspired to represent his country and push past his limits.
“I’ve always been inspired by the Olympic athletes, but I am a middle-class person – I have to look after my family and my job. I can’t give my life to sports, I must have an income,” he says.
Though life took a different direction, Palav has never stopped hoping to do something outstanding.
“This is something unique, and that’s what the Guinness World Records are about – [doing] something extraordinary. That’s what interests me – what is that thing people don’t usually do,” he says.
“I came across [typing with nose], and thought, I can do this – and I was able to, surprisingly! Now it’s official, I have a certificate, and it’s marvellous.”
An IT worker for over 15 years, Omkar Palav and his family moved to Adelaide just last year, working full time to support his wife and 7-year-old daughter.
“Moving here, and with a new job and settling in, it was quite difficult [to go for a record], especially with my family as well… There was a lot of things going on in this previous year and I had some health issues as well but I overcame them; those things did not stop me.”
Palav was determined to succeed, practicing for three to four hours late at night, after his family had gone to bed. Training diligently for eight months prior to his attempt, he even logged each of his attempts and performed statistical analysis to improve his timing.
“I thought, let’s step up and try to do this… I knew I had to go to bed, but I was so excited! I was so determined to do it, and I kept going,” he remembers.
Like many great athletes, health issues marred his training somewhere down the track.
“When my health went down, I thought this isn’t possible, this is too much stress, and I cancelled my application,” Palav says.
“But [doing this] kept me going and helped me forget about my health issues; it built a sense of motivation, an objective to achieve.”
His 7-year-old daughter Anjni Palav also helped him train, holding down the G5 timer whilst he practiced.
“I want to be a great father for her, so she’s proud…this [record] is the best I think I can give her so far, but maybe there’s more to come in the future,” Palav says.
Hoping to secure his PR next year, Omkar Palav says achieving the record in his new home has made it even more special.
“I have done this in Australia [so] it’s much closer to my heart… I feel proud being an Indian, and I love being in Australia too,” he says. “This doesn’t belong only to me, but it’s for all Indians and Australians around the world.”
He looks forward to attaining more records for our community and cementing his name amongst the greats.
“Sachin Tendulkar said ‘keep dreaming, keep training, and when the time comes, step up and achieve something great’, and that’s what I follow… it doesn’t stop here. I will try my best, whatever it takes, I’m ready to go.”
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