Rein in the rapids
Her story is a déja vu of Kaveri’s. Three years ago, the Academy’s chief coach, Pijush Baroi, spotted Masuma’s mettle. He got her into the sport and on his enthusiastic recommendation, the sports department allowed her a place at the sports hostel.
“Since then Masuma has not looked back and has been making strides in the canoeing sport. She has won 25 national medals in junior and senior categories in the past three years, including multiple medals at last year’s national championship,” the elelated coach Piyush Borai says.
She narrowly missed a podium finish in one of the individual races at the National Games in Uttarakhand. Incidentally, Kaveri Dhimar aced the race, representing Services. But Baroi is undeterred about Masuma’s prospects: “She is one of our most promising talents, and I’m confident about her bright future.”
Like Kaveri inspiring Deepika, Masuma inspired her 16-year-old brother Rohan Yadav to also join the same Academy. She gushes about him no end. “He has already won 15-20 national sub-junior and junior medals. I always pray he performs better than me. We want to ensure that our hard work pays off, and one day, we and our father will start living at a more respectable place.”
There are many more inspiring stories of young talents blossoming in canoeing sport in Madhya Pradesh.
Arvind Verma is an 18-year-old promising canoer from the Sehore district. He is one of three siblings who lost their father quite young. Since the last few years, Arvind has been living with his maternal uncles in another village while his mother, Meena Bai, and younger sisters, Tanu (16) and Poonam (14) often work as agricultural labourers.
“I’ve seen my mother hiding her tears and often sleeping hungry for my two sisters and me. It’s my dream not just to wipe her tears but also ensure that neither she nor my sisters have to work ever on anyone’s farm,” says a tearful Arvind.
The teenager who her maternal uncles scolded for swimming in wells, was selected for the MP Water Sports Academy in Bhopal in 2022.
In his three years at the Academy, he bagged many medals, including two international medals – silver at the Asian Junior (u-23) championship in Thailand and gold at the Asia Cup in Hong Kong. Arvind stood fifth at the World Canoeing Championship in Uzbekistan. He missed the gold at the National Games in Uttarakhand by a narrow margin.
“The lone memory of my father is of his desire for me to join the Army. I sincerely hope that canoeing helps me fulfill his dream one day,” Arvind recalls, his eyes turn moist as he reiterates his vow to make his father proud.
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