Sakshi Malik - the Bronze girl
- In LifeStyle & Sports
- 12:12 PM, Aug 19, 2016
- Ranabir Bhattacharyya
Two days can make all the difference. Two days ago, the discussion was going on in games village and sports headquarters in Delhi whether Indians are going to remember Rio Olympics as ‘unlucky 4th’ or not. Be it Abhinav Bindra or Sania Mirza or Dipa Karmakar, even a ‘Bronze’ medal seemed to be elusive for Indian contingents in Rio Olympics. But credit goes to wrestler Sakshi Mailk, who powered her way to an elegant podium finish, sneaking a tight finish against Aisuluu Tynybekova of Kyrgystan in 58 kg category. She is the first woman wrestler from India to win a medal in Olympics, making it a huge milestone for all other women in India who have their dreams of representing the country in the biggest level.
With tears in her eyes, Sakshi said “Meri 12 saal ki tapasya rang layi (It’s the result of my hard work in the last 12 years). Geeta didi, my senior had qualified for the first time in London. I never thought I would become the first woman wrestler from India to bag an Olympic medal in wrestling.” Indeed from Rohtak to Rio, Sakshi’s journey has not been a swift either. Way back in 2012, she was introduced to the Wrestling arena by her coach Ishwar Dahiya. By the year 2014, she was already a popular figure as she won Silver medal in Commonwealth Games. When she won the Bronze medal in World Wrestling Championship in Doha last year, it was quite clear that she has the mettle to have a podium finish in Olympics. In her weight category, the Russian wrestlers are no doubt miles ahead. Thus, on a practical note, her opponents were strong opponents.
To some extent, Sakshi’s success was largely limited to the Asian circuit. This 23-year-old girl from Mokhra village near Rohtak in Haryana showed immense maturity in Rio Olympics. Let’s not forget that in wrestling events, there aren’t gaps or rest days in between. Initially Sakshi was eliminated in the quarters. In the repechage event, she didn’t look back. She started her bronze journey in a stupendous way by defeating Orkhon Purevdorj of Mongolia 12-3. Sakshi was dominating all throughout against the Mongolian wrestler. In the bronze fight, Sakshi didn’t start well at all. Although she was trailing 0-5 in the beginning, she made a memorable comeback making it 8-5 in quick time. Getting eight consecutive points in Olympics and that too in wrestling isn’t the easiest task either.
The win of Sakshi Malik and PV Sindhu storming into Finals will no doubt have huge significance in the sports context of India. First of all, Indian woman finishing strong on an international podium itself is morale boosting news. Retired cricketer Virender Sehwag rightly said,” Sakshi Malik is a reminder of what can happen if you don’t kill a girl child”. What makes the case of Sakshi special, is that, she hails from Haryana, a state which has faced stiff criticism for abysmal sex ratio. Not to forget pseudo intellectuals like Shobhaa De who made cruel comments about our sports men and women. One can only pray that Sakshi’s success will definitely motivate other wrestlers like Babita Kumari, Yogeshwar Dutt, Sandeep Tomar, and other contingents in their specific categories.
Thankfully there has been a renewed zeal on part of the government, especially after the arrival of Narendra Modi Government with more investment in sports and target oriented approach. But there is so much more that needs to be done. One can definitely expect that Sakshi’s win will definitely facelift the state of sports in India other than the mighty money rich cricketing domain.
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