“Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire, it has the power to unite people in a way that little else does.”
– Nelson Mandela
On one hand, the 2030 Commonwealth Games will be held in Gujarat, and on the other hand, bidding is underway to host the 2036 Olympics in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. Whenever the name Gujarat comes up, people usually form one image in their minds, and that image is business. However, over the past few years, Gujarat has also made a strong mark in the world of sports. This is the reason why world-class championships are now being organized in Gujarat.
In this, there is a very big contribution from sportspersons who bring pride to their state and country, from the national level to the international level. Gujarat also has many young athletes who come from tribal or village areas, yet today they have showcased their talent across the world. Through Gujpreneur, today we are presenting the stories of such sportspersons before you.
Gujarat’s Next Sports Heroes
Whether we take the example of sprinter Sarita Gayakwad, swimmer Maana Patel, tennis player Manush Shah, or cricketer Rudra Patel, one thing is common among all of them. Despite facing tough struggles, they not only brought recognition to Gujarat across the country, but through their exceptional sports skills, they also helped bring India’s name into the global spotlight.
Today, we are going to learn about such athletes who have traveled the journey from fields to fame and today are no longer dependent on any identity.
1. Sarita Gayakwad, Sprinter
Sarita ji’s full name is Saritaben Laxmanbhai Gayakwad, who was born in the Dang district of Gujarat. Born on 1 June 1994, Sarita ji started showing her sports talent at a very young age. At just 24 years of age, she won a gold medal in the women’s 4 × 400 metres relay team at the 2018 Asian Games.
Many of you may not know this, but before switching her career to sprinting, Sarita ji used to play kho kho for Gujarat. Until 2010, she represented Gujarat multiple times in national-level kho kho competitions and won medals. She also became the first female athlete from Gujarat to be selected for track and field events at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
2. Maana Patel, Swimmer
One name that is often mentioned among Gujarat’s athletes is world-class swimmer Maana Patel. Maana’s passion for swimming can be understood from the fact that she started swimming at the age of just 7 years. She is from Ahmedabad city in Gujarat and has achieved several milestones at the global level.
Maana is a backstroke swimmer who participated in the Tokyo Olympics 2020. Along with this, she has also competed in multiple South Asian Games. She has won many gold, silver, and bronze medals at both national and international levels. So far, she has more than 30 international medals and around 100 national medals. In 2019, Maana suffered an injury, but she did not give up. Through day-and-night hard work, she represented the country again at the international level the very next year.
3. Manush Shah, Table Tennis
The journey of Gujarat’s Manush Shah from Vadodara city to the international level was not easy. During this time, he faced many ups and downs in his life. But as they say, the biggest skill an athlete has is patience. Manush Shah used this skill to his advantage and, inspired by domestic competitions, reached the national level and then the international level.
Along with Diya Chitale, he qualified for the World Table Tennis event. This was the first Indian mixed doubles pair to reach that level and create history. If we talk about his career record, his win-loss percentage is 85%, which in itself is a big achievement.
4. Rudra Patel, Cricketer
As soon as the name cricket comes up, a different kind of excitement appears in the minds of Indian people, because our passion for cricket is no secret. Gujarat has already given many international cricket players such as Jasprit Bumrah, Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, and Hardik Pandya. Now another young name has been added to this list, and that is Rudra Patel.
Rudra is currently just 20 years old and is known as an all-rounder in cricket. He is a right-handed top-order batsman, and his bowling style is right-arm off-break. Rudra plays for India’s Under-19 cricket team and has played aggressive innings against many countries, bringing pride to the nation. Rudra teaches us that when your goal is clear, no one can stop you from moving forward.
5. Opina Bhilar, Kho Kho
Opina also belongs to the Dang district of Gujarat and has brought recognition to both Gujarat and the country worldwide through kho kho. However, her journey was not easy either, because kho kho players do not receive much recognition. Still, she never let her confidence weaken.
As a result of her efforts, today Opina has not only participated in many national and international matches but has also won several medals for the country. Recently, she took part in the Kho Kho World Cup held in New Delhi and won a gold medal. Bhilar has represented Gujarat in four Senior National Kho Kho Championships. In 2019, she was injured, but she completed proper rehabilitation during the lockdown and returned to playing kho kho again in 2021.
Conclusion
There are many next-generation young sports heroes in Gujarat, but we have selected five names for you. From them, you can not only learn the passion for sports, but also understand how they did not give up even in adverse situations and kept moving forward.
Through Gujpreneur, we want to tell you that difficulties come in every field, and sports is no different. Here, not only failure is a challenge, but many times athletes get injured even during their best phase. But those whose determination is strong cannot be stopped by anyone.
