Life’s no walk in the park: Ram Baboo’s difficult path to glory finally yields gold and record
Vinayak Padmadeo
Gandhinagar, October 4
It had only been hours since Ram Baboo’s record-breaking feat at the National Games. The 23-year-old from Uttar Pradesh today shattered the national record on his way to winning the 35km race walk gold medal.
Baboo crossed the finish line in 2 hours, 36 minutes, 34 seconds, bettering the record by almost four minutes. The previous record was 2:40:16, set by Juned Khan in Ranchi earlier this year. Khan, the reigning national champion, finished second, while Chandan Singh won the bronze medal.
Yet, for Baboo, the victory was anything but sweet. “I came here to make the national record and win the gold. I did that but I am not satisfied with my performance. I think the race was tough for all of us because of the cement road,” said Baboo, who hails from Babura village in Sonbhadra district.
Baboo is hoping that his performance would wake up the UP Government, which he said was yet to give him his past cash prizes. Baboo comes from a humble family. With no land of their own to till, his father Chhote Lal works as a farm hand, while his mother Mina Devi is a homemaker. Baboo explained how the family struggled for water daily.
“We do not have a hand pump outside our house. My family has to walk two kilometres daily just to fetch drinking water,” Baboo said.
To support his passion, Baboo had to do odd jobs – he worked in a hotel in Varanasi and as a labourer during the 2020 Covid lockdown.
“No one from my village has done anything important in sports. I am the first one,” Baboo said, adding that he caught the sports bug after watching the movie Budhia Singh — Born to Run.
“I worked as a waiter in a Varanasi hotel when I started out in sports. I also washed the dishes. I could only do the job for about a month. I did not get enough time to rest after training because of the job. Besides, people always look down on you when you are a waiter. Nobody respects you ever,” he said.
During the 2020 lockdown, while he was holed up in his village, Baboo used his parents’ MNREGA card to earn some extra money.
“We helped in making roads and digging up ponds. I would get between Rs 200 and Rs 300 for a day’s work. It takes time for the money to be deposited in the account but when it comes it is a sizable sum. It helped with my diet,” said Baboo, who is still unemployed.
Support cast
Baboo has also had help since the day he started racing. His current coach, former Olympian Basant Rana, has been helping him a lot. Because of his coach, Baboo has got a room at the Army Sports Institute in Pune, and does not have to pay for food. Rana also helps him out with the funds required to travel for competitions.
Bangalore’s Kannan Sundarajan, another one of Baboo’s mentors, organised crowdfunding to help out the youngster.
“My parents are my biggest supporters. We do not have money and still they have contributed. Then come my coaches who have stood with me for training and everything else,” Baboo said.
With his latest win, Baboo is hoping to land a proper job with the Indian Army. “I applied last year in October. They changed the rules of recruitment after the Agnipath scheme was introduced by the government. My file is stuck as they do not have clarity about the new rules,” he said.
He also wants his prize money from the UP Government. “They announced that the winners would get Rs 6 lakh. I hope I get it this time. My previous application for other medals is still pending with the officials. They say I will get it but I have not received anything yet,” he added.
