She may be a Commonwealth gold medalist, but Ashwini Ponnappa is a humble girl, who attributes her success to parental support and good coaching, observes Hema Anand
Looking very pretty in a casual, blue, sleeveless dress, she warmly welcomed me into her apartment, with an even prettier smile. The moment I entered, the first thing that caught my attention was the hoard of trophies and medals displayed in the shelves of her living room.
Ashwini Ponnappa, the 25-year-old Bangalore girl has once again done the country proud by winning the silver medal, along with her partner Jwala Gutta, in the women’s doubles badminton event in the recently concluded Commonwealth Games at Glasgow; it is just another feather in her cap.
She has already won several medals for the country at international events, including the gold medal at the 2010 Common Wealth Games held in Delhi. She also holds the record for the hardest hitter of the shuttle in the world in women’s badminton; her overhead smash touched the speed of 260 kmph at the Paris World Championship in 2010!
Ask her how it all began and she reminisces, “As a three-year-old, I was a very restless and hyperactive kid. Once my mom gave me an old badminton racquet, made small paper balls, and flung them at me. I contacted them really well.”
Of course, at that time her mother had not thought that her little girl would grow up to become an ace badminton player and win laurels for the country.
Ashwini says, “As I grew a little older, I started playing badminton outside my house with family and friends. Seeing my love and passion for the sport, my parents sent me to summer camps at YMCA, at the tender age of eight and then to coaching classes at the State Youth Centre. There, I trained under a wonderful coach, Umapathi, who helped me get the basics of the game right. Unfortunately, he passed away, and so, I joined the Prakash Padukone Academy, where I continued my coaching for six-seven years under three coaches – Prakash Padukone, U Vimal Kumar and VR Beedu.’’ Ashwini is a born athlete and has sports in her genes.
Both her parents have a sporting background. Her father, MA Ponnappa has been a state-level hockey player for 15 years and her mother, Kaveri Ponnappa, is passionate about mountaineering and trekking.
When in school, Ashwini won several awards and medals in athletic events like long jump and running. In fact, spotting this talent in her, athletics coach VR Beedu told her parents, “If Ashwini leaves badminton, I will make her a national-level athlete.’’ But as destiny would have it, Ashwini remained loyal to badminton, and today, her parents and all her coaches are more than happy for that. Her family then shifted to Hyderabad, where she continued her training.
And now that she is back in Bangalore, she is training under Tom John. Talking about the most cherished moment in her career so far, Ashwini comments, “Winning the gold medal in the 2010 Commonwealth Games was a really proud moment for me. Playing in my own country, with a packed stadium cheering me, and then going on to win the gold was an exhilarating experience!’’
As for the success, she attributes it to the specialised training she and her partner, Jwala, received under Indonesian coaches (who specialise in the badminton doubles game).
“We attended the special coaching camp prior to the 2010 Commonwealth Game. I truly believe that such kinds of camps need to be carried out on a regular basis, rather than just before a major event. Our country has a lot of potential; it only needs tapping, for us to make a better mark in the international arena,” she says.
It was not easy for Ashwini to strike a balance between academics and badminton coaching. But thanks to her very supportive parents, teachers and principals, who always stood by her, she managed to achieve everything she has aspired for.
Ashwini loves animals, and reckons that if she weren’t a badminton player, she may have considered becoming a veterinary doctor! But for now, her aim is to ace the Rio De Janeiro Olympics, and also become the number one player in women’s badminton in the near future.
Ashwini feels that her parents have had a big hand in her career – not simply because they, too, are sportspersons – because they let her choose her own path.
She maintains, “There is always the need for parental support when it comes to making a champion out of a good sportsperson. Indian parents should be more open to the idea of their kids opting for sports as a career, rather than pushing their kids to do well in academics alone.”
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Supplements> She / by Hema Anand / September 12th, 2014
