KASARGOD: He should have been the poster boy of powerlifting in Uttar Pradesh. But nearly 2,500 km away from home, he is guarding the perimeter of a luxury hotel in Kasargod.
The 21-year-old Robin Singh is an 18-time state champion in sub-junior, junior and senior categories between 2012 and 2016. At the Subrata Classic International Powerlifting Championship at Jamshedpur, he finished second behind Iran’s Arash Rezaei in the 93kg category.
“I thought the government would support me. But all I got was `10,000 from the district administration on the Republic Day,” he said, choking on his words. Poverty was gnawing at his dream and the self-trained powerlifter left his home at Ladpur village in Bulandshahr district. Robin came to Delhi and left his CV at several staffing agencies. One of them found him a job as a security executive at The Lalit Resort & Spa at Bekal. Powerlifting is not an Olympic sport but championships are conducted regularly by federations. It is a strength sport in which contestants attempt three types of lift - squat, bench press and dead lift - in a set sequence.
Born to a farmer couple - Lalita and Subhas Singh Poonia - Robin was taken to bodybuilding when he was in Class VIII in 2008. “There was no sportsperson or bodybuilders in the family and my parents were baffled at my choice,” he said. He converted a shed in his house into a gym, made weights out of his mother’s chakki (stone grinder) and upholstered a plank with rexine for his bench press. In 2012, he drifted to powerlifting through Youtube and signed up for a trial for North Zone championship at Mathura. “I sat through the tournament watching others lifting weight, learning the techniques,” he said.
At the NZ championship at Patiala, Robin won the gold in the 93kg category. Since then there was no looking back. “I go to tournaments to learn techniques. I speak to referees for guidance, then train at home,” he said. But without a proper trainer, it was just a matter of time before he herniated his spinal discs. “In 2015, I had bulge in L4, L5 and S1 discs,” he said. Doctors asked him to quit the sport.
But after six months of rest, he returned to the ring. But the first resistance came from his home. Every day Robin drank four to five litres of milk and ate 60 almonds. His parents cultivated wheat, mustard and rice in their 1.5 acres of farmland but the income was too meagre to sustain Robin’s schedule. He has two younger brothers too. “Luckily, my mother reared two cows and three buffaloes,” he said.
The frequent crop failure due to drought and rain also made his going tough. But his exploits at the Subrata Classic changed his family’s perception. “The villagers gave me a rousing welcome upon my return. My parents said they would support me. But I know it was tough for them. Perhaps, my dream was too big,” he said. On the brighter side, Ladpur started warming up to the sport. Youngsters started approaching Robin who threw open his gym for them. But after five months, Robin left home in search of a job.