Small town heroes fulfil big dreams at Commonwealth Games-Tuesday, Oct 12, 2010,

Small town heroes fulfil big dreams at Commonwealth Games

Published: Tuesday, Oct 12, 2010, 1:52 IST

(THIS IS THE BEST PART OF TODAY'S SPORTS ACHIEVEMENTS...VIBHA)

By Tushar Dutt | Place: New Delhi | Agency: DNA

When Deepika Kumari won gold in the women’s singles recurve event in archery, on Sunday, she joined a special league apart from being among the medal winners — a league of small-town achievers.

Be it Deepika, shooter Omkar Singh, gymnast Ashish Kumar, long-distance runner Kavita Raut, the athletes have made the tricolour fly high, along with putting their towns on the sporting map.

Deepika, who hails from Ranchi, is daughter of Shiv Charan Mohato, an auto-rickshaw driver, while Omkar Singh, who won three gold medals and one silver, comes from Kotma Colliery village of Anuppur district in Madhya Pradesh.

They have made a bold statement and made the country proud by winning medals in the Commonwealth Games. India has won a plethora of medals, but those won by these athletes are special, as nobody knew their names before the Games started.

So what does it take to reach such a level for an athlete from a modest background and a small place?

“It takes a lot of courage for a player to come from a village and participate with players who he has either heard of or seen on television. It is very difficult not to get nervous but at the same time it boosts the confidence when he decides to prove a point,” says Singh.

“There are a lot of factors that give an advantage to a player, who comes from a metro. Be it schooling or overall grooming, a player is high on confidence when he comes from a city, while it takes time for a player to adjust when he comes from a small village,” says Singh.

Kavita Raut, who created history by winning India’s first bronze in the 10,000m race, feels it is the motivation level that makes lesser known athletes different from the popular ones. It is different for someone like her, who was born and brought up in a tribal area of Maharashtra.

“When an athlete like me goes to an international completion, it is not just the medal that is a motivation. Bringing our village’s name on the international sporting map is also on our minds,” feels Kavita Raut, who was brought up in Trimbakpur, a tribal area of Maharashtra.

Ashish, who is back in his hometown Allahabad, feels the only famous person from his city was Amitabh Bachchan and now he is glad to bring his city on the international map. “For me, the medal is not just an achievement, but it is a lifelong investment for my city. After I won the medals, kids from my city came to me and said that they will take up gymnastics and make the country proud, the way I did,” he says.

“These are additional motivations which we get and this is why players from rural areas are coming up,” he sums up.