Samridhi Kaushal — a star judoka in the making

Anil Datt

Ludhiana, June 17

Samridhi Kaushal of Ludhiana has made a mark in the field of martial arts, winning a number of medals in her weight category in not only state, but national-level judo competitions as well.

Samridhi, a student of Class VIII at DAV Public School, Bhai Randhir Singh Nagar branch, began the game three years ago.

In her very first competition, Samridhi gave a stunning performance when she won three silver medals in the district-level tournament, organised by the Ludhiana Judo Association in 2016. She also bagged a silver medal in the district championship conducted by the Education Department, the same year.

Next year, Samridhi made her presence felt as she clinched gold in the DAV Schools’ Cluster-Level Tournament at Nakodar. The same year she wrapped up top honours in the Punjab State Judo Tournament held at Fazilka.

Samridhi proved her mettle at the national level towards the end of 2017, when she secured a bronze medal in the National Judo Championship at Haridwar.

She went on to add another gold in her kitty in 2018 besides finishing runner-up in the DAV Schools State-Level Judo Competition held at Ludhiana and on the basis of this performance, she was selected for the DAV Nationals held at Sahibabad.

She also won a silver medal last year in the District Judo Championship organised by the Punjab Sports Department under the Tandarust Punjab campaign held under the Khelo India scheme.

Samridhi has been preparing hard for the next session, wherein she will compete in the below 36-kg weight category.

Amandeep Singh, school judo coach, has high hopes from Samridhi. “She has all ingredients of emerging as an international star. She has been following a strenuous schedule, required to achieve the desired goal,” he exuded confidence.

Jaswinder Kaur Sidhu, Principal, DAV Public School, BRS Nagar, appreciated Samridhi and her coach Amandeep for bringing glory to the school. She wished them success during the ensuing session.