Injury, poverty, societal pressure: How India’s Golden Girls overcame it all to shine at Asian Games
Courage and fortitude helped these 3 make history.
By ET Online | Updated:
Agencies
(From left) Rahi Sarnobat, Swapna Barman, Vinesh Phogat won gold at the Asian Games
Some broke records and some made history; Indian athletes have displayed a great show at the Asian Games. With 11 gold, and counting, India’s medal tally has been impressive, thanks to its girls.
These golden girls broke all stereotypes, surpassed societal and economic limitations, and some even fought physical abnormalities to become what they are today -an inspiration for women, at home, and abroad..
The Gems Of India Continue To Shine Bright: Power Girls Making Us Proud At Asian Games
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She came on the field, she played like a hero and left the stadium with more than a medal. What she wore was a sense of glory, victory and the honour of making her country proud. This is what the winners at the Asian Games have been living.
The ongoing games have seen strong and talented women bring home joy and glory.
Here's a look the women from Team India who are winning our hearts.
In Pic: Tennis player Ankita Raina (L), Shooter Rahi Sarnobat (C) and Wrestler Vinesh Phogat (R).
She came on the field, she played like a hero and left the stadium with more than a medal. What she wore was a sense of glory, victory and the honour of making her country proud. This is what the win..
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Pincky Balhara recently bagged the silver medal at the Asian Games 2018 for Kurash, a martial arts sport. The 19-year old girl had surpassed a serious tragedy at home and still managed to perform exceptionally at the games. The Delhi girl lost three of her family members, including her father, three months before the final event. But these did not become a hurdle in Balhara's way to victory.
Pincky Balhara recently bagged the silver medal at the Asian Games 2018 for Kurash, a martial arts sport. The 19-year old girl had surpassed a serious tragedy at home and still managed to perform e..
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Dipika Pallikal is an Indian professional squash player who won the bronze medal in the squash women's singles event at the Asian Games recently. The 26-year-old hails from Chennai and gained prominence in the year 2011.
Dipika Pallikal is an Indian professional squash player who won the bronze medal in the squash women's singles event at the Asian Games recently. The 26-year-old hails from Chennai and gained promi..
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Swapna Barman created history as she became the first Indian woman to achieve a top podium finish in the gruelling heptathlon event at the Asian Games.
The daughter of a van rickshaw puller, Barman was born with six toes on each foot.
The heptathlon is a seven-event contest which covers a range of track and field events and is spread over two days.
Swapna Barman created history as she became the first Indian woman to achieve a top podium finish in the gruelling heptathlon event at the Asian Games.
The daughter of a van rickshaw puller, Barman ..
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Neena Varakil bagged a silver medal in the women's long jump category. The 27-year old's final winning jump was 6.1 metres, a little lesser than her personal best (6.6 metres).
Neena Varakil bagged a silver medal in the women's long jump category. The 27-year old's final winning jump was 6.1 metres, a little lesser than her personal best (6.6 metres).
Sudha Singh, national 3000m steeplechase champion, won the silver medal in the same event. The 32-year old won the gold medal when the event was first introduced in the Asian Games.
Sudha Singh, national 3000m steeplechase champion, won the silver medal in the same event. The 32-year old won the gold medal when the event was first introduced in the Asian Games.
Hima Das, an Assamese sprinter, grabbed the silver medal in women's 400 metre. The 18-year old broke her own national record by clocking 50.79 seconds.
Hima Das, an Assamese sprinter, grabbed the silver medal in women's 400 metre. The 18-year old broke her own national record by clocking 50.79 seconds.
After Saina Nehwal brought home a bronze medal in the Asian Games, PV Sindhu grabbed the silver medal thereafter. The 23-year old is the first Indian to bring home a silver in women's single badminton event.
After Saina Nehwal brought home a bronze medal in the Asian Games, PV Sindhu grabbed the silver medal thereafter. The 23-year old is the first Indian to bring home a silver in women's single badminto..
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Rahi Sarnobat became the first female Indian shooter to win a gold medal at the Asian Games.
The 27-year-old was up emerged as the winner after two shoot-off rounds.
This is her first major medal since the Commonwealth Games gold in 2014. An elbow injury which she picked up even before Glasgow had set her back for the next two years.
Rahi Sarnobat became the first female Indian shooter to win a gold medal at the Asian Games.The 27-year-old was up emerged as the winner after two shoot-off rounds.This is her first major medal since..
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Freestyle wrestler Divya Kakran brought home the bronze medal in the 68kg category. In just 90 seconds, the 20-year old defeated Taipei's Chen Wenling during the third-place play-off bout.
Freestyle wrestler Divya Kakran brought home the bronze medal in the 68kg category. In just 90 seconds, the 20-year old defeated Taipei's Chen Wenling during the third-place play-off bout.
She suffered a gum infection a day before the finals India would have had 1 gold less if Barman had given in to the excruciating pain she went through a night before making history. The 21-year-old heptathlete was suffering from a serious gum infection , which she said was the result of ‘too many chocolates’. Barman later said that she had even considered pulling out of the final game due to the pain.
But she did not give in and rather woke up and gave an exceptional performance in 7 events of the final game spread over a period of two days. With a bandage on her jaw and immense determination in her heart, the daughter of a rickshaw-puller fought the pain through long jump, javelin and an 800m on the first day. The second day, on the other hand, included 200m hurdles, shot put, high jump and 100m.
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But tooth pain wasn’t her only trouble. Barman, who has 6 toes in each foot,also struggled with her shoes. The young girl from Bengal’s Jalpaiguri district also suffered chronic back pain and went through physiotherapy sessions. But for her, injuries and pain were just a part of her journey.
Barman’s life back home has also not been a bed of roses. With her father bedridden after two strokes, and mother struggling to make ends meet with a househelp tea-picker’s job in the gardens, finances too were a challenge for the family.
But her determination kept her going. Eventually, she earned sponsorships, including one from Rahul Dravid, and made her way to the Asian Games.
And then, there was no looking back. Barman did not stop until she made it to the top of the podium in the heptathlon event, creating history by winning India its first ever gold in this category.
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2. Rahi Sarnobat
She suffered an arm injury in 2013 Born in Kolhapur and hailing from a joint family, Rahi Sarnobat never fell short of support. The villain in her story was an arm injury. The shooter had spent years struggling with an injury in the right arm.
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5 years ago , the 27-year-old tripped on an uneven road in Pune and landed hard on her right arm. Due to this, she could not rotate her elbow properly for a very long time. Eventually she adjusted.. But then again, when her elbow opened up, she had to adjust to that too.
Struggling with her shooting arm, she still managed to win a gold at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. But even after that, things did not get better for her; instead, they got worse. Sarnobat failed to shoot properly for the next 7 months. In this period, she threw herself into a rehab which gave her a great deal of physical and mental pain. Following which, she tried 5 shots but the pain was strong enough to bring her to tears.
In 2017, after training under Munkhbayar Dorjsuren, double world champion and Olympic medallist, she made her comeback, fetching the gold medal in Indonesia. She made history by becoming the first Indian female shooter to win a gold in the Asian Games.
<p>The 24-year old recently became the first Indian woman wrestler to win a gold in the Asian Games<br></p> Wrestling, to some parts of the society, is a sport for men. But the Phogat family had different views altogether. After Mahavir Singh Phogat let his daughters into the ‘dangal’, his younger brother’s daughter Vinesh followed suit.
Having lost her father at the age of 9, she was brought up by of her uncle Mahavir himself, and also trained under him.
Fighting immense social pressures, Vinesh established herself as a wrestler. With the entire village opposing the desire of the Phogats to send their daughters into this profession, the struggle was quite severe. There were instances when Vinesh had to go against men in the field.
But fighting all such obstructions and pressures, Vinesh made it to the top. The 24-year old recently became the first Indian woman wrestler to win a gold in the Asian Games.
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