Mary Kom, Sushila Chanu, Mirabai Chanu, Kunjarani Devi, Dingko Singh — there are many sports stars from the Northeast who have done India proud at international events. However, most of these big names belong to Manipur. Now, another Northeastern state is fast emerging as a sporting powerhouse and that is Mizoram.
Several young players from the state have been making a splash in football fields and striking gold in weightlifting arenas in recent years. And that has been possible due to the whole-hearted state support, be it doling out money for sports promotion or building infrastructure. Jeremy Lalrinnunga, who scripted history by winning the gold medal in 62 kg category weightlifting event at the Youth Olympics in Argentina recently, is a shining example of how state support to sports can go a long way in nurturing talents.
There were a whole lot of people behind the success of the 15-year-old. Almost all members of the Mizoram Weightlifting Association had contributed to give Mizoram a weightlifting academy where Jeremy honed his skills.
An 18-year-old Lalremsiami is creating ripples in the hockey fields. The forward was a member of the Indian squad that played in this year’s World Cup. At the Asian Games that followed, she became the first sportsperson from Mizoram to win an Asiad medal (silver). In June this year, 22-year-old Mizo boxer N T Lalbiakkima stunned the world by defeating prevailing Olympic lightweight (49 kg) champion Hasanboy Dusmatov of Uzbekistan in the President’s Cup in Kazakhstan.
Mizoram has given India a number of ace footballers like Jeje Lalpekhlua, Lalrindika Ralte, Lalchhuanmawia Fanai, Jerry Lalrinzuala, Lalruatthara etc. who play for top Indian clubs and also represented the country after the trend was set by S Malsawmtluanga. Now, it is the turn of sportspersons of other disciplines to make a mark. There are a number of young weightlifters, boxers and hockey players, apart from footballers, waiting to play for India.
State support and the willingness of parents to allow their children to pursue a career in sports have made all the difference. Mizoram has a policy by which sporting talents are identified at the grassroots level and imparted training at various academies that have come up in the past decade.
For all this, the locals give credit to the Congress government led by Lal Thanhawla which, they say, is generously giving funds for the promotion of sports. The parents, too, have realised that their children can build their future through sports and are happily sending them to the academies. Aizawl-based sports writer John Zothansanga says the turnaround was possible largely due to Mizoram Football League (MPL) and the support of the state government.
“Mizos are sporting by nature and get into sports at an early age. Earlier, we didn’t have the facilities and proper guidance to go to the next level. Football is a passion and hobby in Mizoram. The children here know about MPL and want to make it big through it. The MPL would not have been possible without the state government’s support. The government has built several stadiums and academies,” Zothansanga tells The Sunday Standard.
“There was a mental block among parents earlier, but now they have started thinking differently and are open-minded. Jeremy’s parents told me they supported him from a young age. He started training in weightlifting when he was in Class 4. In Class 5, he was sent to an academy.”
Hmingdailova Khiangte, president of Hockey Mizoram, attributes the state’s coming of age in sports to improved infrastructure. “A lot of efforts are going on. We have four-five football grounds with artificial grass and there are a number of stadiums. We have two astro-turf grounds for hockey. Talent has always been there; we could discover them as we now have the infrastructure. We are in the process of developing and nurturing them. The state government is taking a lot of interest. We are also doing well in basketball and volleyball. There are a number of young basketball and volleyball players waiting for opportunities,” he says.
Thangchungnungba, president of the Mizoram Weightlifting Association, says the state is taking giant leaps in the sports arena as it has a proper structure for competitive sports. “We have grassroots level training. We have a policy whereby children, both boys and girls, are imparted training in various sports disciplines. We have access to some world-class sports infrastructure for all weathers. Apart from MPL, a professional boxing league has been introduced.
Then, there are basketball and volleyball leagues. All these have enabled the rise of many young sportspersons. We have some 200 footballers playing club football across the country. Football alone has created 476 jobs. Not many people knew about hockey in Mizoram before Lalremsiami shone on the world stage. So, a lot of effort has gone into where Mizoram is today vis-à-vis games and sports,” he says.
State minister Lalthanzara says the government is focused on developing all sports disciplines, including football which is the most popular. We have eight football grounds with artificial grass. We are developing one more. The artificial grass there will be arranged by FIFA. That apart, we have constructed a number of indoor stadiums and academies for other sports. We have started grassroots football for children whereby young boys are sent to Germany for training. The chief minister takes a keen interest in promoting sports. Initially, there was a craze for hockey among the youth and then they started taking interest in football. Now, they are into all sports disciplines,” Lalthanzara says.