Little known until a few months ago, wushu is gaining popularity after Sandhyarani and Bimoljit won India two medals in the martial art at the Asian Games. But a lot needs to be done to lift the sport in this cricket-crazy country, writes Akshi Aggarwal.
Very few people knew about the sport until Sandhyarani Devi Wangkhem and Bimoljit Singh finished on the podium at the 16th Asian Games in Guangzhou last year. The sport was considered esoteric and too complex to understand until these two CRPF employees won India two medals in the martial art, bringing wushu some attention.
Introduced in India in 1989, wushu, known for its speed, technique and reflexes, has come a long way, though those associated with the sport say a lot more needs to be done to bring it to the forefront. They are disheartened that, even after putting in so much effort and winning laurels for the country, the government has failed to provide them with basic facilities such as a proper wushu arena and an expert wushu coach.
“I am overwhelmed by the response and appreciation I have received after the Asian Games, but that appreciation has never turned into facilities or met my requirements. China has the best coaches and facilities. Training in that environment would benefit us a lot. We must be given a Chinese coach or training sessions in China, which could work wonders,” says Sandhyarani, adding that even countries such as Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have expert foreign coaches.
“Here we have to practise on judo mats, whereas wushu mats are different. In India there are no real wushu arenas. Things have started to change after the Asian Games medal, though. I have found a sponsor, and I hope things will change for the better in the coming times,” Sandhyarani adds.
Bimoljit agrees. “After I won my first Asian Games medal in Doha, I asked for a Chinese coach, but so far my requests have gone unheard,” said the bronze medal winner, adding that India has a lot of talent and that, even with so few facilities, Indian players have regularly succeeded on the international stage.
“We know that with good facilities at our disposal, we can do far better. Now that we have proved our credentials at international events, the government should show some interest in our sport as well. I am sure players like us will shine in international tournaments,” adds the athlete from Manipur.
Sajan Lama, another junior wushu champion, who holds the best-ever timing of 9.45 minutes at the Wushu World Championships, suggests: “Either send Indian coaches to China to learn the improved techniques, or invite Chinese coaches to our country so that the players get a hold of the updated tactics, which would help us compete with the best in the business.”
However, Rajvir Singh, their coach and a former India wushu team captain, believes that bringing in a Chinese coach would not serve the purpose. “The players can only gain if they are sent to China for further training, as the Chinese are the best and have the best facilities,” says Rajvir, adding that a proposal is under discussion under which a delegation of 20 people, including players and coaches, will be sent to Beijing University in April–May this year as part of a university exchange programme.
Despite the apathy, the sport has attracted great interest among youngsters. Its growing popularity was evident at the recent Delhi State Championship, where the event received 518 entries from 20 wushu clubs in Delhi for 60 events across the sub-junior, junior and senior weight categories. The sport has had a real push after Sandhyarani and Bimoljit’s success at the Asian Games, and it is now up to the government and the authorities concerned to build on its growing popularity and take it to the next level.
