Meerut (Uttar Pradesh): Annu Rani grabbed the limelight in the sports fraternity last year when she won a gold in the Asian Games. The athlete who practised the sport by throwing Bamboo sticks or Sugarcane sticks has a lot of hopes lying on her shoulders. During an interaction with ETV Bharat, her relatives narrated the tale of her struggles and were confident about Annu winning a gold medal in the French capital.
There was a time when the girls from Western parts of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana were restricted to their homes only but the athletes from the state are now excelling in various sectors. Annu Rani has also scripted such a story and has made her hometown Bahadurpur familiar across the country.
Annu is the daughter of Amarpal Singh who is a farmer. Her mother Munni Devi has said that the athlete used to practice her throws with Bamboo sticks or Sugarcane sticks whenever she didn't have money to buy a new javelin.
Father resisted initially but now backs Annu strongly to do well in the sport.
Annu's father Amarpal admits that he was against Annu going outside home and playing a sport as a profession. However, when his daughter spoke her heart out, her father obliged her request to let her play. Amarpal says that he is proud of her daughter as people now recognise him by Annu's name only.
Her brother Upendra said that she was interested in Short Put or Discuss Throw earlier. Then, her coach told her that throwing javelin would be suitable for her and she opted for the sport. She then went on to bag medals at the state level, district level and national level.
There was a time when Annu used to go out for a run at 4 AM in the early morning and return back home before sunset as the girls in the village were neither wearing low skirts nor they were playing any sport. She has now become an inspiration for many budding athletes. Her brother told that she sent Rakhi by courier for the occasion of Raksha Bandhan. Annu will play on August 7.
