By Amir Tantray
Jammu: The Jammu and Kashmir government recognising the efforts of a young gymnast Rudraksh Khanna and awarding him as an outstanding sportsperson has motivated him to realize the dream of winning an international gold medal for the country.
In an interview with ETV Bharat, the 13-year-old boy from Jammu talks about his journey from entering the gymnastics arena for the first time and now being awarded by the J&K government.
"I was yet to wake up on Republic Day when my mother came running to my room and hugged me and whispered in my ears that the government had given me the Outstanding Sports Person award for the year 2004-25. In slumber, I was not able to get it on the first attempt but after a couple of minutes, I returned to my senses and realized that something big had happened," Rudraksh, a shy boy full but full of resolve, said.
Gymnast Rudraksh Khanna Expressed His Wishes To Win Gold Medal For India (ETV Bharat) The five feet six inches tall boy with great flexibility, Rudraksh is the national aerobics gymnastics champion and youth leader of aerobics gymnastics in India. He has represented the country twice in the Asian games and once in the World Gymnastics Championship being organised by the International Gymnastics Federation (IGF). Currently, he is training for the World Championship and Asian Championship and wants to win a medal for the country, a dream of his late father.
Gymnast Rudraksh Khanna Expressed His Wishes To Win Gold Medal For India (ETV Bharat) "My focus is to win an international medal and with the support of the coaches and family, I am hopeful to achieve this feat sooner or later. We don’t have any dearth of talent here and coaches are also doing their best to train us. If anything needs to be improved, it is the facility which gymnasts from other countries are getting so that we will be able to outclass them. The government is coming up with a couple of such facilities and soon the gymnasts of India will get the opportunity to excel," he said.
Gymnast Rudraksh Khanna Expressed His Wishes To Win Gold Medal For India (ETV Bharat) Till two decades ago, gymnastics was not pursued in India and was mostly dominated by European countries. Only a few Asian nations like China, Japan, South Korea, and Vietnam had players competing on the international stage. With the passage of time and the efforts of players like Krupali Singh, who is an Arjuna awardee, gymnastics has now grown in India.
Gymnast Rudraksh Khanna Expressed His Wishes To Win Gold Medal For India (ETV Bharat) Rudraksh gives credit for his achievement to his coaches, Surinder Pal Singh, Krupali Singh and Manisha who are putting their best efforts to groom players. Every day dozens of budding gymnasts train under their leadership and Rudraksh has come through a proper procedure. In India where people are mad after cricket, Rudraksh selecting gymnastics was a bold decision and making a name in this field has proven his decision right.
"When I first entered the Maulana Azad stadium here, my mother Seema Kharyal, who has remained a renowned national skater, wanted me to choose whatever game I wished. Gymnastics attracted me a lot because of its elegance and the fitness level gymnasts have. In the early days, it was tough to cope with the training sessions where children used to cry. Many times, I felt acute pain and was not able to walk but I never gave up. From the age of six till today, gymnastics has become my passion and will continue to remain throughout my life," the national aerobics gymnastics champion said.
In the early days of life, the young athlete passed through difficult times when during COVID-19 days his father Rajinder Kumar Khanna was infected with Coronavirus and later got infected with a disease which took his life on January 27, 2023. "It was the toughest time of my life so far. When my father passed away, getting along with gymnastics was difficult. But with the support of my mother, I was able to continue with the game and today my hard work is paying off,” he said.
Thanking the J&K government for giving him the state award, Rudraksh said, "I am thankful to the Lieutenant Governor of J&K, Chief Minister, minister for sports, J&K State Sports Council, my coaches, my mother and sister and all those who have supported me during my journey. This award means a lot as it will motivate me to go for the gold at international level.”
