Gurdaspur: Judokas find aspirations washed away in floods

Flood risk is a threat that the government should be protecting us against. Despite collecting taxes, it has left people vulnerable to waters entering their homes, let alone flattening agricultural crops, the mainstay of income for Punjab and Punjabis. Likewise, the floods have also hit sporting infrastructure in a big way.

The Shaheed Bhagat Singh JFI Judo Centre has made a name for itself by producing nearly 40 international judokas from a small town like Gurdaspur. In metropolitan cities, they have much bigger and modern training centres, but their results do not match up to the level of Gurdaspur centre which functions from the local School of Eminence (SoE).

However, the recent deluge has damaged the centre to the extent where it will take months of sunshine to bring back its lost glory. As for now, it is lying in tatters. Players were training for several international tourneys lined up for the coming months. There was going to be a flood of opportunities for the judokas, but now, as ill-luck would have it, the waters have washed them all away.

The flood, once it made its way into the main hall, partially destroyed 40 pieces of the 100-piece judo mat. Coaches Amarjit Shastri, Ravi Kumar, Satish Kumar and Atul Kumar joined hands to push the remaining 60 pieces to safety. The mat is already a 12-year-old entity and chances are that it may not be able to withstand the toll that training takes, once practice starts.When the floods come, the fish eat the ants. This adage suggests that in times of crisis, the weak are preyed upon by the strong. Here, it is no different. The equipment which over the years had developed minor faults has almost been eaten away by the water.

The centre has been closed since August 25 and nobody can predict when it will start functioning again.

Karamjit Singh Mann had won a gold medal in the World Police Games held in Alabama (USA) in July this year. He was eyeing future international tournaments to improve his world rankings. However, as they say, destiny follows no predictable pattern. He now spends his time in the gym, which fortunately has escaped the flood fury. Sarabjit Singh, yet another winner in the World Police Games held two years ago, was another judoka who wanted to improve his ranking by taking part in international meets. His dreams, too, have been washed away, leaving him depressed at the turn of events. Harsh Brar, employed in the Indian Army, used to practice at this centre. He was preparing for the national ranking tournament to be held in Delhi later this month. This was a career defining tourney for him as players placed in the first eight brackets get a chance to be selected in the Indian team for the Commonwealth Games, Asian Games and other championships.

Young Parab was all set to tour Egypt on his own expenses to participate in an international tournament. Needless to say, water has wreaked havoc on her dreams.

For younger players, the important tournaments for which they wanted to get fine-tuned were the upcoming National Cadet Championships (U-18) and the Senior National Championships.

Harpreet Kaur (17), one of the finest talents to have emerged in recent years, is left facing a tragedy of the first order. The deluge swept away her house in Rawalpindi village, 8 km from here. Her family’s entire paddy crop stands completely damaged. Her parents knew that their daughter was obsessed with the sport. They left their damaged house to the mercy of the Gods, brought their daughter to Gurdaspur and rented a two-room house. They know that she cannot practice at the centre but also know this time is apt for Harpreet to pick weights at the gym and improve her physique which they think can hold her in good stead in future tournaments. This is what is called dedication, or call it commitment, or devotion. All eyes are on Harpreet as to how she performs in the future. She is placed second in the national rankings in the cadet category (U-17).

Everybody is waiting for the waters to recede. And everybody remembers Jane Austen’s famous quote: When the waters do agree, it is quite wonderful the relief they give.