Kaifa Shah did Kashmir proud, won gold in junior wushu nationals held in Calicut

Kaifa Shah, the golden girl of this championship, said in an exclusive conversation with ETV Bharat that "from the first match, my eyes were on the gold medal because I had worked hard." The 16-year-old Shah, a resident of Srinagar's Rawalpura area, says she used to play badminton earlier, but later started playing wushu since 2013.

Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir): Jammu and Kashmir Junior Wushu Team has bagged one gold, four silver and three bronze medals in the 21st Junior National Wushu Championship held at Calicut, Kerala from September 1 to 6 and stayed on 5th in the medal tally. For Jammu and Kashmir, Kaifa Shah won the gold medal in 56 kg while Muhammad Ali, Musharraf, Ajmal and Ansa Chishti won silver medals and Muhammad Amir, Vasu and Pulkit Singh won bronze medals.

Kaifa Shah, the golden girl of this championship, said in an exclusive conversation with ETV Bharat that "from the first match, my eyes were on the gold medal because I had worked hard." The 16-year-old Shah, a resident of Srinagar's Rawalpura area, says she used to play badminton earlier, but later started playing wushu since 2013. During this time, she also got injured and was bedridden for six months, but she did not lose heart.

She said, "My back was injured, but I continued to go for light practice during the lockdown. I won my first national medal in 2016 and this time I won a gold medal." She further said that "Haryana and Manipur teams are quite strong, but the way the Jammu and Kashmir team defeated them this time, now Jammu and Kashmir is also one of the strong teams." Shah considers herself lucky to have the support of her parents and the best coaches.

She said, "My parents have always supported me and the coaches have put in a lot of hard work. You are seeing the result. There is still more to come. Now I have to go to the national camp from where I can be selected for the Indonesia competition." Recalling the moment of her victory, she said, "First round was not that important, but when the whistle blew marking the end of second round, I cried and looked at my mother and my coach. My dream had come true."

Kaifa Shah is not the only one in her family who plays wushu, her younger sister Aliza Shah is also a national champion and hence these two sisters are known as the Shah Sisters. She says, "My sister always guides me. Even at home, if there is a tip-off, she wins. I don't do anything because she is younger." She further said that "women and men should come to sports in Kashmir. The time wasted in using mobile phones can be used for mental and physical fitness. Whoever before me, has won medals for Kashmir, is an inspiration for us."

Wushu coach Kuldeep Handoo, who was awarded the Dronacharya Award, also praised the Jammu and Kashmir team. He said, "This is just the beginning, there is still more to come. We need medals in the Asian Games, the Olympics. The way they are participating right now and if they continue like this, they will be on the top."