CHENNAI: August 14, 2016. The day India found its next female sporting icon. Dipa Karmakar had finished fourth at the Rio Olympics after successfully executing the Produnova vault, often called the vault of death. Such are the risks involved that only five people in the world have managed to complete it.
The future was bright and the sky was the limit for the Tripura girl as she came home amidst a lot of fanfare. But fate can be cruel sometimes. Just before the trials of the Asian Gymnastics Championships in April 2017, she hurt her knee during the national camp at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in
New Delhi.
She was immediately flown to Mumbai to consult with the famous Dr Anant Joshi and subsequent scans revealed an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury. Without wasting further time, she was operated on. An ACL injury is one of the hardest to recover from and has taken a toll on countless sportspersons in the world.
A brave Dipa began the rehabilitation process barely a fortnight later, a long journey back to competitive action. And it was difficult to say the least. She had to wait and watch as multiple international tournaments passed her by and her teammates went on to represent the country. Every iota of patience was required. It was because of her long-time coach Bisweswar Nandi that she managed to pull through.
“It was difficult. Mentally as well as physically. Nandi Sir was there for me the whole time along with all members of the SAI backroom staff including my physio Sajad Ahmed Mir. I would also like to thank Gymnastics Federation and everyone who stood by me, believed in me and never gave up hope,” the 24-year-old said.
And Nandi saw first-hand how his ward struggled during that phase. “For a top-class gymnast, remaining still and not doing anything is tough in itself. She had to fully focus on rehab. Sports Authority of India gave us all the help required,” Nandi, who has been her coach since she was six, added.
She required the help of SAI psychologist Bhawna Chauhan as she fought to get back to what she loves. Things looked bleak when she had to pull out of the Commonwealth Games after Nandi felt she was not ready to return. Such is the bond between the two that she readily accepts whatever the Dronacharya awardee says.
And then came the first ray of hope. She qualified for the Asian Games after topping the group. Seeing that, Nandi finally decided that Dipa was ready to face the world. She participated in the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Challenge Cup in Mersin, Turkey. Employing the Handspring 360 and Tsukuhara 720 with difficulty ratings of 5.4 and 5.6, she clinched gold with an average score of 14.150.
“More than the gold, it was nice to participate in an international tournament. It gives a huge boost as I prepare for the Asian Games.” Incidentally, it was India’s second ever gold in a FIG event.And Nandi feels Dipa is slowly but surely getting back to her best. “The best thing I can say is her fear is gone. Dr Bhawna really helped. She went about her business with minimum fuss which shows she is ready. But as with all ACL injuries, the prerogative is to ensure her knee is not put under too much duress. Because of which, she won’t be attempting the Produnova at Jakarta. She will go for the Handspring 360 and Tsukuhara 720 once again.”
The average score of the Produnova has been reduced from an earlier value of 7 to 6.4 with marks being deducted for poor execution. Will we see Dipa trying out the death-defying vault any time soon? “Of course. The vault, if done correctly, is still the highest scoring as points for all vaults have come down. She has practised the vault her entire life. We will start training for it hopefully by this year-end,” Nandi signed off.
ayantan@newindianexpress.com