BHUBANESWAR: During the men’s pole vault final of the ongoing Open National Athletics Championships, there was one athlete who cleared almost all his attempts. While others were vocal after one successful jump, Subramani Siva just kept a poker face and carried on. But at the end of the day, there was a wide smile on his face as he clinched gold with a meet record of 5.10m.
But suddenly, that smile faded away after a quick phone call with his parents. It was not because his attempt was lesser than the national record of 5.30m that he set a week before. “My parents are always feeling bad that I haven’t won a medal in an international event. So my focus is to get myself to that level,” Siva told Express. The 22-year-old had narrowly missed out on qualifying for the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games earlier this year as he was not fully fit. He knows that national records don’t mean much unless he wins at the international level.
Looking at the way Indian medal winners are being treated and felicitated all over the country makes the Thanjavur lad glum. “The Asian Games and Commonwealth Games were a huge miss for me. I was having a hamstring pain right before the trials and was not able to give my best. Opportunities don’t come often and I feel I wasted mine. I hope I get another chance. Now I have jumped 5.30m. 5.45m would have got me a medal in CWG (jointthird with Luke Cutts who won bronze).” But what makes him more sad is the way people look at pole vaulters in the country. “There is a mindset that Indians can never win an international medal in pole vault.
I am going to change that narrative. If I do it, many pole vaulters will start believing. I hope I can start a trend that will encourage more people to take up the sport,” he added. Siva has already set a target of 5.70 (this, incidentally, was the qualifying mark for the 2016 Olympics, a stage where no Indian pole-vaulter has been to) before the Asian Athletics Championships next year in Doha. He believes that pole vault is mostly about technique and is very confident in his own abilities. But that alone is not enough to excel. Being an expensive sport, he is on the look out for sponsors who can provide him with better facilities. “Lots of expenses are there and the army is helping me. But a proper pole will make a big difference. Now I use a pole provided by the army.
If I can get three good poles (each worth `90,000), then I can perform better. I have been looking for a sponsor for so long and have not been lucky so far.” Training at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium in Chennai since college days, Siva has no plans to shift elsewhere anytime soon. Don Wilcox who has been coaching him since 2013 is the best coach that anyone can ask for according to the young star. Results, however, will only come if there is support. What bothers him is that the authorities are not ready to provide them with the most basic of facilities.
“The lack of proper facilities in Chennai is a huge blow. I have asked SDAT to change at least the bed. A proper landing pad (spike-resistant mattress) can protect us from a lot of injuries. I train along with Surekha akka, who is the women’s national record holder. Yet, there is very less support. It’s been one year now. Nothing has happened so far. I hope they do it soon,” he concluded. vimalsankar@newindianexpress.com