Mumbai on the 4th of September : Weightlifter Saikhom Mirabai Chanu, who took home the gold in Commonwealth Games 2022, discussed her motivations in the world of sports with the host and megastar Amitabh Bachchan on ‘Kaun banega Crorepati 14’.She also talked about the ways that her trainer in Manipur helped her gain the confidence to pursue her goals.She remembers her childhood of picking bamboo in forests before her coach in Manipur noticed her the desire to train and gave her her first weights to work with.
“I was always wishing to train in the city, but there was nobody I could rely on to help me,” Mirabai recalled.”One day my trainer in Manipur provided me with weights of 35 kilograms to train with and I was content.I thought that maybe my coach understood my desire to train and was important in realizing my goals.”
“Eventually I began to train with all my energy and never thought that because of the lack of proper equipment to train I could not follow my dreams! I didn’t give up hope and persevered.”
To add more spice to the conversation that Mirabai’s co-star in the show her trainer Vijay Sharma shared what he observed in the weightlifter when he chose to instruct her.
“There are two aspects that make Mira above other players.One is discipline, and the other is her dedication.
Then, after the Rio Olympics in 2016 Mira me and I went with the hopes of being awarded the medal, and our performance was good, but we were a bit disappointed,” Sharma said.
He explained: “Mira felt demotivated and considered of abandoning her weightlifting career but after about 10 or 15 days after Mira’s mom, me as well as the Federation all did our best to help the athlete and motivate her she declared that she would work harder.After a year, in 2017 she became the World Champion.”
Mirabai also credits the truck driver called Gopang for bringing her motivation in her profession.She recalls that Gopang was the one who helped her get to her training center in time.
“The distance between my home in the village and the training center was 24 kilometers.
When I entered the world of sport, I was required to leave early as there was an assembly to be held at 5 a.m.! There were no taxis on the route this early in the morning, except for trucks, which began playing in the early morning , between 3 a.m.or 4 a.m.,” the 28-year-old weightlifter explained.
Then, she recalls how she convinced her mother to let her to travel in the truck.
“I told my mother that I would travel by truck, but it was difficult convincing my mom.However I had a strong desire to get into the gym, eventually, one day, I asked the driver of a truck for a suggestion if he could take me to pick me up for me and drop me off at the center every morning.He was so pleased and was willing to accept it, and also told me to train in a proper manner.Every day he would take me to the airport and then drop me off, and there was never one day that I didn’t train,” Mirabai added.
Thanking the driver of the truck, she said: “Today I am standing in the front of Amitabh sir sporting my medal and want to express my gratitude to the driver of that truck.Whatever medals I bring home, I will not forget him.For him, I’ve made it this high in my life.”
The episode of September 5 will feature boxer Nikhat Zareen and weightlifter Saikhom Mirabai Chanu appearing on the show as well as telling stories of their triumph in Commonwealth Games 2022 held in Birmingham, England.
‘Kaun Banega Crorepati 14’ airs on Sony Entertainment Television
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