Geeta Phogat
Geeta Phogat has made it a habit of breaking gender stereotypes. Born in a village where it was not considered appropriate for women to participate in sport, the Haryana girl took to that most manly of disciplines — wrestling.
Inspired by the exploits of weightlifter Karnam Malleswari and with the support of her father Mahavir Singh Phogat, she has managed to surpass all social limitations.
“After watching Malleswari win a medal at the 2000 Olympics, my father wanted his daughters to do something similar. Since my father had been a wrestler himself, he wanted me to champion the sport and win a medal in wrestling,” said Geeta, the only Indian female Olympian in wrestling.
Geeta gives all credit of her success to her father, as he plays dual roles in her life — father-cum-strict coach. “My idol is my father. Whatever I have learnt... wherever I am... it’s because of him. He is the pillar of support in my life. I feel even at home, he is more like a coach. He is a little strict as a coach than a father. My aim right now is to qualify for the Rio Olympics in 2016. It’s my father’s dream that I win a medal for the country at the Olympics and I am training hard for the same. Although there are coaches provided by the federation at the national camp, my personal coach is my father,” says Geeta, who became the first Indian woman to clinch a gold in wrestling at the 2010 Commonwealth Games. Since representing the country at the London Olympics, Geeta has fired up an entire generation of women wrestlers in her home state. An inspirational video on Youtube has added to the glorious story of the Haryana girl. Perhaps the most inspired are her sisters, Babita and Vinesh who claimed a gold each at the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
“We are four sisters and two of our cousins also train with us. My father wanted all six of us to become successful wrestlers,” she adds. The 26-year-old has been inspired by the freedom fighters of our country and loves to read about them as it keep her motivated all the time. “When I train at the camp, I like to rest after a hard day’s work. There is no time to watch TV. Saturday evening and Sunday are off days. Sometimes, we go for a movie or shopping. I like to watch news and love reading and learning about freedom fighters of our country. They were real heroes,” says Geeta.
Geeta is a firm believer in God, but says the Almighty will only help if one works hard. Like any other girl, she also likes to shop and party. But a strict diet regime and training sessions means that she cannot devote too much time to leisure. “While I’m home or at training, it is very important for me to control my weight ahead of a tournament. I avoid eating junk food. I only have vegetables, fruits and milk,” she shares.
Asked about her favourite travel destination, she reveals, “We barely get time to see places when we travel. We have about four to five days and a lot of time is taken up by the competition itself. But otherwise, London is my favourite place. The discipline of people and everything is very beautiful there,” recalls the eldest sister in the family. So is there any pressure to get married? Geeta waves away the question with a laugh,“I have never cooked.
First, I need to learn cooking before marriage and I don’t have time right now. There are no plans of marriage before the Rio Olympics. Let’s see what happens after that,” she quips. According to reports, Bollywood actor Aamir Khan is planning a movie on the wrestler’s family and will play the role of Geeta’s father himself. The Phogat sisters were also part of one of Aamir’s Satyamev Jayate and it’s perhaps this show that inspired Aamir to take up the role.
( Source : dc )
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