Lack of facilities no hurdle for gymnast Bavleen Kaur
PUNE: The badminton hall at the MA Stadium in Jammu does not have the best of facilities for the 200-odd gymnasts who train there regularly. That, however, hasn’t stopped Bavleen Kaur, one of the trainees, from stamping her class at the Khelo India Youth Games here.
The 16-year-old gymnast from Jammu and Kashmir has won five medals, three gold and two silver, for the state in the rhythmic gymnastics event.
“We come from a state which doesn’t have proper facilities to train. We practice on normal mats and sometimes we even practice in the parks outside in case there are too many gymnasts in the hall,” she explained.
“I started doing gymnastics 6-7 years back. I took this sport as a recreational activity but soon got interested in it. It was my father who wanted me to get into sports,” added Kaur.
“It looks very gracious, this sport. But the toughest part is in learning it, and I feel it tougher than any other sport. One needs to have a lot of concentration and should be ready for tremendous hard work,” said Kaur, who had won four medals at the 2018 Khelo India School Games.
Kaur credits her coaches Krupali Patel Singh and SP Singh for her early success.
“I just want to become like my coach Krupali (Singh). She is my role model. Our coaches are like foster parents. It is because of them that we are here today. They are so caring that even if our parents are not in town they will take care of our lunch and dinner,” said Kaur, an 11th standard s t udent of KC Public School.
“During many events, whenever there hasn’t been good food at the venue, they have spent money from their pockets to feed us,” added Kaur.