IRON GIRL-THE PIONEER
The Medals of 2016 Olympics has a special shining for Indians as for the first time in Olympics history it was enriched only by its female citizens.The Medal which points to the hardwork and strong determination of two women – Sakshi Malik and P V Sindhu. We still celebrates that victory. But their footsteps to the podium reflects also another voice.
“I feel proud to have created this pathway for our girls and to see them winning the Olympic Medals. Some even tell me today, Ma’am you started it all”. Of course, these two medalists reminds us about the Iron girl of Andhra Pradesh. The one who inspired lots of girls to dream.
We are not only speaking about a girl who was born in Voosavaanipeta, who is the pioneer of these changes, who won 29 international medals
including 11 gold medals in world championships and Asian weightlifting championships and who received Arjuna award but also a girl who had been turned away by a coach of local gymnasium in small town of Voosavanipeta because she was deemed too thin and weak for sports. This spurred her to prove him wrong. She was coming from a family of sports people. Her father Karnam Manohar was a college level football player and her four sisters had taken to weight lifting. But it was her mother Shyamala the only non sports person in the family encouraged her to pursue her dreams. Although Malleswari never received any formal training during her early years her career took flight after being spotted by India’s Russian weightlifting coach when her sister was training at a National camp. The coach recommended Karnam to Banglore sports Institution. After then in her first Junior National weightlifting championship she broke nine National records in 52kg category. In 1991 she won a silver in Senior Nationals held in Ambala. In World Championships in Melbourne she snapped Bronze in 1993. In the following year she clinched gold in 1994 World Championships in Isthanbul. She won silver in 1994, again Gold in 1995, and bronze in 1996. By this time she also prepared for Olympics. The sight of Karnam rubbing her hands with white powder and walking towards the weight at Sydney is still a striking one. But as she tried to lift the weight laying her hand on the bar, she failed and the heavy metal crashed on to the floor broke a billion hearts. We Indians with her had to satisfy with a bronze then. But that was enough for lots of girls like P V Sindhu, Sakshi Malik, Anju Bobby George and Saina Nehwal to dream.
“Though we had signs of this change coming about from early eighties, It is only after Karnam won her Medal at the Sydney Games that we saw a sudden spike” Comments Anju Boby George.
Yes-She is the pioneer. At a time in which convincing the mindset of society which considered sports like weight lifting, wrestling and boxing as manly was more difficult than winning matches, she emerged as the first Indian women Olympic world Medalist. Indian sports women had been the pride of orr nation at the Olympics in past decade. But position of Karnam in our heart will be special as she is the chain breaker. But we know as in every fields we are struggling for gender equality in sports also. In a situation where women are paid much lesser than men the Olympic medal of a women in weight lifting had has and will be having a special shinning. Let our women could retain that shine forever.