Disability no bar as 16-yr-old wrestles to clinch bronze in Russia tourney
GURUGRAM: Ritik Nagal, a student of Gurugram’s Welfare Centre for Persons with Hearing & Speech Impairment, has made the country proud by securing bronze medal in World Deaf Freestyle Wrestling Championship, which took place in Vladimir, Russia from June 11 to June 19.
Nagal (16), who secured the medal in 51 kg weight in cadet category, received a grand welcome by the district administration on arrival at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport late Wednesday night.
A student of class 8, Nagal has been studying in Gurugram for the last 3 years.
“We are proud of him and encourage him to do better. His victory has opened the door of opportunity for him and will inspire him to do better. His success in the championship didn’t come easy as students like him do face many obstacles. There are not enough facilities for differently abled players in the country,” Hawa Singh, organis- ing secretary of Haryana Welfare Society for Persons with Speech and Hearing Impairment, said.
A resident of Jaitpur village in Jhajjar, Nahal joined an akhada for training in Bupania village in Bahadurgarh two years ago. He was the only differently abled child in a group of 170 students.
Nahal’s trainer Jai Bir Lohchab said,“initially, I faced a lot of trouble giving him instructions. Wrestling is essentially about combat and he would often miss the instructions. However, he improved a lot and we got him to participate in dangal (duels) across villages. He also fought with those who were not differently abled. He trains for 6 hours every day.”
Lohcha has great hopes from him. Calling Nahal a dedicated student, he said, “Ritik is talented and sharp-minded. He understands things quickly. His win will inspire other differently abled students to do better.”
Nahal’s family is on cloud nine after his performance.
“We are proud and elated at his success. Everyone in the village is happy with his achievement since he has made both the village and country proud,” Raj Kumar, his elder brother, said. The news report headlined, ‘17 killed as tourist bus rams road divider in UP’S Mainpuri district,’ in the edition dated June 14 said that a Volvo bus was involved in the accident. The bus was not manufactured by Volvo. The error is regretted.