3 girls make it big in World Taekwondo C’ship

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, December 25

Three girls, who started taekwondo training to acquire self-defence techniques, have made it big in the World Taekwondo Championship by winning medals in their respective categories. Trained by a former national champion, Sukhamrit Pal Singh Dhillon, at a free training facility at Rajasansi, near here, Pawandeep Kaur and Manpreet Kaur have won silver medals while Sangita Devi has won a bronze medal.

The girls participated in the fourth World Taekwondo Championship, held at Dehradun on December 21 and 22. Taekwondo players from 15 nations participated in the competition. Apart from these three girls, around 50 girls of government schools are attending the free training school run by Dhillon.

Talking to The Tribune, Dhillon said, “Initially the local schools had invited me to help school girls acquire self-defence techniques in case they encountered eve-teasing or harassment. But later we started a free facility because the girls were interested in continuing the training.” Apart from running a free coaching facility at Rajasansi, Dhillon is a local agriculturist.

Girls trained by Dhillon had earlier won 12 gold, 13 silver and seven bronze medals during the last National Taekwondo Championship. On the basis of their performance, three of his students were selected to represent India in the world championship.

The Municipal Council Rajasansi’s chairman Harwinder Singh Vicky, who has helped in the training by allowing Dhillon to use the MC’s property for the purpose, said, “Earlier Dhillon had started training girls on the premises of the International Airport here. However, the training could not be continued for long as the airport authorities cited security reasons.” Vicky also helps the team to purchase uniforms and other equipment.

He said that encouraged with the performance of the three girls they had decided to start active training for the upcoming competitions. “We have a walled playground where we have constructed a room recently for the girls. Next, we will do whatever is required to continue the practice.”