When B’luru girl Pavana Nagaraj broke the national indoor long jump record this year, leaping 6.47 metres, the first call she made was to her mother. Along with the pride that any mother would feel deeply and express, Sahana Kumari, a former Olympian and national high jump record holder herself, had something more to say. “She told me we have more to do – she always makes me feel humble,” recalls Pavana as Kumari adds with the professional precision of a coach, “I was proud because she was a junior compared to others but since we need 6.60 to qualify for the Asian Games, I told her to focus on consistency and bettering her performance.”
This attitude to push oneself further is something Sahana herself has embodied. After giving birth to her daughter at 23 in the peak of her career, she refused to cave to expectations that she would give up athletics, as she says, “It’s not easy to return to sports after a kid. The expectation at home also was that I would stay home but I knew I wanted to show my talent. My husband (BG Nagaraj, former national and international sprinter) supported me, but it was a tough time. Whenever I was tired after practice and came home, Pavana would curiously ask me about the competition, about the jumps – she was my inspiration.” Her work paid off, too, as Sahana shares with pride, “I won gold at the open nationals six months after returning to the sport.” She went on to win silver at the 2010 South Asian Games, gold in 2016 and represented India at the Olympics in 2012.
As an elementary school child, Pavana grew up steeped in her mother’s world of athletics practices national level players and international coaches. On one such practice day, sparks flew. “When I was training with Ukrainian coach Evgeny Nikitin ahead of the Olympics, she used to come along. To keep her occupied, Nikitin set up a band and told her to jump. I remember her taking three strides and executing a scissor jump. She surprised us all,” says Sahana, while Pavana adds, “I had watched all the athletes so much that it stayed in my mind.”
However, Pavana following in her mother’s footsteps was not the plan at all, with her dad encouraging her to pursue track throughout school. While doing so, though, Pavana secretly signed up for the high jump competition at an inter-school meet, winning gold and starting off her journey competing in long jump and high jump competitions too.
Finally, one moment sealed the deal. “The moment I realised with certainty that this was my passion was winning gold at the U-14 nationals and setting a high jump record by jumping 1.63 metres. I realised I have potential.” While having her mom as coach through the intensity of professional sports is undoubtedly an advantage, one has to wonder if there is pressure too, of the weight of a legacy of gold medals. She says, “Pressure is the privilege that comes when people think you are capable of something big.” Sahana adds that she and Pavana too take care to hold the line between motivation and pressure.
Right now, having just returned to B’luru from Oklahoma University, Pavana has her eyes set on outdoor long jump competitions, to be held in July, which will determine if she will qualify for the Asian Games. She says, “I’ve been focusing on my training. I’m going to give my best and believe that results will come with it.” And you can bet that Sahana will be right there to see it when it happens.