After winning 3 golds in school games, city lad gears up for national judo meet
After winning three gold medals in judo at the national level in school games, Shivansh Vashisht, a young judo player from Jalandhar, is now setting his sights on the Junior National Judo Championship, which starts tomorrow in Dehradun.
Recently having completed his Class XII CBSE exams, Shivansh is the star player at Police DAV Public School, Jalandhar Cantt. Having been passionate about judo since the age of six, he has recently expanded his skills to another sport—Kurash. He won a silver medal at the Kurash World Championship held in Mongolia.
Shivansh explains, “Both judo and Kurash are attacking sports that require power. While the rules differ, especially regarding leg grips and fouls, they are similar in terms of physical strength and tactics. I compete in the 55 kg category and I have to be very careful about maintaining my weight, especially before tournaments.”
Shivansh follows a demanding training routine, beginning his day at 5 am. He works on his stamina, strength and power through running, exercises and practice sessions for both judo and Kurash at his school, the PAP and at a Government School on Ladowali Road. He trains under two coaches: Rakesh at school and Surinder at the Ladowali Road centre.
He credits his father, ASI Raj Kumar, who serves in the Punjab Police and was a national-level kabaddi player, for inspiring him to take up sports. “My mother, Ambika Kumar, is a principal at a private school and she has always supported my sports journey,” Shivansh said.
Rashmi Vij, Principal of Police DAV Public School, praised Shivansh’s dedication, saying, “Shivansh has always been a promising player. He recently competed in the Junior State Judo Championship in Ludhiana and has now been selected for the Junior National Judo Championship in Dehradun.”
With his schooling now behind him, Shivansh is looking forward to starting college in the coming months. “These are championship days for me,” he shared. “The top four finishers in the national championship will be selected for a training camp, ahead of the international championships. I’m keeping my fingers crossed.”
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