Trailblazer P T Usha has enjoyed a dream run. Now, as a mentor to Gen Next, the sprint queen hopes to bring an Olympic medal in athletics to India.
For years, Payyoli, a sleepy hamlet in north Kerala, has been synonymous with Pilavullakandi Thekkeparambil Usha. Even today, Payyoli Express, the pet name for the girl who came 1/100th of a second close to bagging an Olympic medal in athletics for India, is the sole claim to fame for this town, which is otherwise just a blip on the map. On the outdoor wall of Ushus, home to India’s most successful athlete, is a golden embossed figure of her on the track. A large showcase brims with innumerable medals amassed over an eventful career spanning two decades. Pictures on the wall—with American Olympic medallist Carl Lewis, Mother Teresa and Indira Gandhi among others—tell their own stories.
Usha has won more international medals than anybody else in the history of Indian sport. At the Asian Track and Field Meet in Jakarta in 1985, she won five gold medals to set the World Record for most gold medals by a female athlete in a single track meet. And she still holds the National Record for best timing in 200 m, a record she set during her comeback after marriage and childbirth at the age of 34.
The ‘Queen of Indian Track and Field’ was born to E P M Paithal and T V Lakshmi on 27 June 1964, as the fifth of six siblings—Seetha, Pushpa, Shobha, Suma and Pradeep. Discovered by coach and mentor O M Nambiar at the age of 12, she won maximum chocolates from him —an incentive for the best student! In a parallel, years later in Mumbai, another sporting legend in the making, Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar, collected maximum one rupee coins from his coach Ramakant Achrekar for batting well and retaining his wicket. What set these sporting icons apart is not just talent but their drive, determination, strength of character and steely resolve to stay put, whether on the track or the pitch.
Esta historia es de la edición December 2016 de Harmony - Celebrate Age.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición December 2016 de Harmony - Celebrate Age.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Wrapped In Love
My Dadi Meenakshi Banerji was a short and tubby woman with great gumption who raised 10 citizens of the world.
Sharing Her ‘Mettle'
To me, this bell metal vaarpu, which weighs about 80 kg and is at least 120 years old, is an enduring reminder of my paternal grandmother Aleyamma Abraham.
Medical Overload
Your doctor may walk the talk while writing out your prescriptions but here’s the thing: make sure he hasn’t prescribed one too many.
An Act Of Faith
One act of kindness can save someone’s life.’
Armed For Business
The sheer glory and glamour of the Olive Greens motivated me, a third-generation soldier, to join the Army. Thus I enlisted, brimming with enthusiasm, in 1984.
Capture the fracture
Fracture owing to osteoporosis can have a serious impact on a person’s health and quality of life. Dr Abhijit Y Pawar, consultant orthopaedic spine surgeon at Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital, speaks about the significance of timely intervention in preventing fractures
Friends With Benefits!
Incontinence need not interfere with life.
Yellow, Yellow, Gritty Fellows!
It was a nippy Sunday morning but nothing that would keep the rugged Delhiite away from the annual Senior Citizens’ Run supported by Harmony at the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon. Not even the mood-dampening smog that had descended on the capital a week earlier could do that! So said 74 year-old Sarla Rani and her band of regulars at the run who arrived at Nehru Stadium on the morning of 19 November even before the sun did. Soon they were joined by busloads of silvers from all over Delhi, Noida and Gurugram.
Magic By The Sea
From Lord Jagannath to oceanside beauty and green initiatives, Braja Sorensen uncovers the many layers of Puri.
Indian Rhapsody
In a span of two decades, Roshen Dalal has attained renown for her painstakingly researched books on history and religions in India. The Puffin History of India and The Puffin History of the World, each in two volumes, have not just received critical acclaim but are bestsellers as well. Her other books include The Religions of India: A Concise Guide to Nine Major Faiths; Hinduism: An Alphabetical Guide; The Vedas: An Introduction to Hinduism’s Sacred Texts and The Compact Timeline History of the World.
