HYDERABAD: Adika Nagasiri Chandana, the nine-year-old karate champ, is back in India after a fresh win at the 18th Milo International open karate tournament held at Malaysia between May 12-14.
The Class III student who studied at Dilsuknagar Public School at Karmanghat, has been practicing Karate since 2013 and has been participating in state, national and international tournaments winning gold, silver and bronze medals, consistently under the tutelage of her coach Samuel. Says Nagasiri, “Isn’t it cool that I could fulfill my mom’s dream on Mother’s Day?”
Her mom Sudha Adika, who works for a financial solutions company in the city had accompanied Siri for her tournament. Her coach Samuel says that her determination and passion towards the sport made her succeed in every tournament she had participated in.
Last year, she had won a silver medal in Sparing and Bronze medal in Kata in the 18th FSKA World Cup Shotokan Karate Championship in Mumbai in September.
Free time: I love to spend my free time drawing, cycling and swimming
Her idols: Bruce lee and Dr Abdul Kalam
Family and friends: I hail from a non-sporty family. My dad Venu Gopal is a digital analyst and mom Sudha is an IT professional. My grandparents are teachers.
Diet regimen: Four eggs for breakfast, dry fruits, fresh fruits and salads. Six hours practice during holidays, four on other days
The balancing act: I am organised and manage to finish my homework soon after school so that my evening is free for karate, which takes four hours of my time. I feel stressed out when I cannot focus on my studies. I want to excel in academics too. I am now in Class IV in AVN Vida International school
Big dream: Gold medal in 2020 Olympics