Black belt in Aikido Rahul Gandhi shows off his killer moves

NEW DELHI: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi recently divulged that he is a sports aficionado - he runs, swims, gyms and also holds a black belt in Japanese martial art Aikido.

Rahul made the revelation when boxer Vijender Singh quizzed him on the importance of sports in his life at the annual meet of the PHD Chamber of Commerce. Vijender, who is an Olympics bronze medalist, observed that while he had seen MPs and MLAs cut ribbons at events, he'd yet to see a politician engaging in sports.

At this, Rahul had assured the boxer that he'd share a video or photo of him doing so on social media.


Well, the Congress party's official Twitter handle on Wednesday retweeted photos of Rahul practising Aikido with renowned instructor Paritos Kar.



Dressed in a traditional keikogi (uniform) with a black obi (belt) tied around his waist, Rahul shows off his technique in Aikido hand holds and wrist grabs. The 47-year-old also succeeds in tossing his sparring partner to the mat, as seen in one of the photos.

The tweet seems aimed at dispelling doubts regarding Rahul's prowess in the Japanese martial art and show that his commitment to sports was no mere lip-service.

Last week, the Gandhi scion had said that unlike other politicians, he takes a keen interest in sports and devotes an hour out of his busy schedule to some physical activity to stay fit.

"I do exercise -- running, swimming. I am a black belt in Aikido. I keep doing (sports) but I do not talk about it publicly. But in my life, sports has been, is, and will be, very necessary," Rahul said.

Vijender had then remarked that people were used to seeing Rahul go toe-to-toe with political rivals in the Parliament, but if the Congress leader put out a video on his sporting activities, it would inspire others.

Rahul had admitted that for the last three or four months, he'd not been able to give time to sports, but it seems that his promise to Vijender Singh had him return to the dojo.