Inter-state Athletics: Lugging round poles is a brand new problem for decathlete Tejaswin Shankar

For Commonwealth Games bronze medallist excessive jumper Tejaswin Shankar, reaching the Kalinga stadium in Bhubaneswar for the Inter-State meet together with his gear was in itself half the battle gained.

Aiming to symbolize India within the much less glamorous but gruelling decathlon for the upcoming Asian Games, Tejaswin landed in Delhi about 10 days again from Kansas City, US, the place he just lately stop his “extremely well paid” job.

But when he landed within the Capital after his transit flight from Finland, he needed to wait unusually lengthy for his baggage which ultimately was handed to him after virtually 4 days. The contents of the bundle had been a set of poles for vaulting that would not match by any conveyer belt on the Delhi airport, leaving officers with a puzzle to crack. The Pole vault is without doubt one of the 10 occasions which comprise the decathlon.

“I went there for four days and almost sat on a dharna (protest there),” joked the two-time NCAA champion. But after just a few calls to the higher-ups, his poles had been launched from a separate gate after some further paperwork.

Tejaswin with pole vaulters. (Express Photo)

“I have never faced such issues while travelling in the US but when I came here and spoke to Siva (current pole vault national record) he told me this is a daily affair for vaulters. My respect for vaulters has increased by leaps and bounds now,” Tejaswin, who labored within the audit staff of Deollite after ending his enterprise research at Kansas State University, mentioned.

Bargaining expertise

When he arrived in Bhubaneswar for the Inter-State meet which can act as a variety trial for the upcoming Asian Games, he confronted one remaining hurdle in bringing the poles to the stadium. “My room is just a kilometre away from the stadium and the cab driver was asking for Rs 700. All Delhi bargaining skills, which were lying dormant in the US for the last six years, came to life,” Tejaswin mentioned.

Tejaswin is now centered on breaking the decathlon nationwide file which he missed by a whisker in April. At the Jim Click Shootout competitors in Arizona, USA in April he amassed 7,648 factors — 10 fewer than Bharatinder Singh’s 2011 nationwide file. In the method, he additionally breached the Athletics Federation of India’s Asian Games minimize of seven,500 however Tejaswin will not be going to take any possibilities particularly after what transpired within the run-up to the Commonwealth Games final 12 months.

“Primary goal is to finish first. My mind and body are completely set and I will go after the record but the only hurdle right now is the humid weather. But that is not bothering me as the conditions are the same for everyone. One thing I have learnt from the CWG episode is that you have been just ready to perform at any time and under any circumstance,” Tejaswin mentioned.

Tejaswin is referring to the entire choice fiasco that occurred forward of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games final 12 months when he needed to take the federation to court docket to compete regardless of being the one excessive jumper to have achieved the AFI’s qualifying customary. His identify was included on the final second as he watched the opening ceremony from his residence in Delhi.

Despite the uncertainty and race in opposition to time, Tejaswin managed to win India’s first-ever excessive bounce medal on the CWG. “That medal changed me entirely. It made me believe in my abilities. I just kept my mind clear. I wasn’t going to think about jet lag, lack of preparation etc. I just went out and performed and it paid off. That medal has made me a different person and athlete,” he mentioned.

After a six-year stint within the US the place he joined Deollite after finishing his grasp’s in accounting from Kansas State University, Tejaswin has returned to India. His visa was attributable to expire however he didn’t search an extension since he wished to spend extra time together with his household and ailing grandmother.

Tejaswin feels his keep within the US has utterly modified his outlook in the direction of not solely sports activities however life. One of the issues he first observed was the stark distinction in how elite athletes in India are handled as in comparison with the US. He had first-hand expertise at his first job itself.

“They hired me purely for my academic abilities. I would sometimes work for 12 hours and then go to practice. People at the office clapped for me after I returned from a competition and even said they watched me on tv but their next line was, ‘Where is the report’ (laughs). Here, athletes stay in a camp and all the facilities are provided. Their American athletes get a bare minimum stipend and have to work to earn a living,” mentioned Tejaswin.

“Hammer Throw 2022 world champion Brooke Anderson is a friend of mine, and you will not believe what she does. She cooks for others while continuing her training. So one thing I have learnt there is, nothing comes easy,” he mentioned. That lesson will turn out to be useful throughout his two-day 10-event competitors within the humid situations of Bhubaneshwar.

Watch out for

Barring just a few huge names, the Inter-State meet will see a number of star athletes competing to safe a spot within the Asian Games squad.

Jyothi Yarraji (100m hurdles): Arguably the most effective athletes on the circuit, Jyothi is the primary and solely Indian athlete to clock a sub 13s 100m hurdles. She has run 4 sub-13 hurdles this season to date.

Sreeshankar Murali (lengthy bounce): Fresh from a confidence-boosting Paris Diamond League third-place end, Sreeshankar could be desirous to reclaim his nationwide file from his buddy Jeswin Aldrin, who recorded an enormous bounce of 8.42m just a few months in the past.

Shaili Singh (lengthy bounce): After going by a lean patch attributable to accidents, prodigious jumper Shaili Singh is again in enterprise. Just like the boys’s occasion, the ladies’s lengthy bounce guarantees to be a high-octane contest with Ancy Joseph and seasoned Nayana James within the combine

Praveen Chitravel (triple bounce): He jumped 17.37m in Havana — higher than the nationwide mark — but it surely waits to be seen whether it is ratified. CWG medallists Abdulla Aboobacker, Eldhose Paul, World U20 silver medalist Selva Prabhu, and Karthik Unnikrishnan make it a robust discipline.