NEW DELHI: Surendra Kumar Singh, in a lighter vein, still ponders whether opening schools in remote villages of Uttarakhand is a good idea. Schools in the vicinity undoubtedly gives children access to education, but lesser travel distance means they won’t have to run several kilometers to reach school on time.
“In our place, children develop endurance by going to school by foot. Perched high in the mountains, most villages don’t have vehicles, and they’re forced to walk or run. As a result, stamina increases, and they become better long-distance runners over time. We don’t have many options, apart from joining the army, or becoming long-distance runners,” the ace long-distance coach says with a playful smile.
The armyman’s village still remains cut from the rest of the world. The road stops three kilometers from his place. When asked about the future of long-distance running in India, he says, “Things aren’t bad, and boys are still working hard. There are boys still covering at least six kilometers. Running comes naturally to them, and as long as they run and fight against the altitude and topography, we’ll have a steady supply line of winners.”
Hailing from Ghandiyal village in Chamoli district, which is situated close to Tibet on the northern side, Surendra had to cover 20km up and down to school. It was this ordeal that brought out the runner in him. But he became a full athlete several years after joining the army. He was 28 then, and went on to create national records in 3000m and 10000m, before representing the country at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
With three of his wards — T Gopi, Nitendra Singh Rawat and Kheta Ram – making the Rio grade, he’s happy. And he expects two more to earn Olympic berths. G Lakshmanan and L Surya are likely to qualify in 10000 and 5000m, respectively.
Nevertheless, not much adulation has come his way. “I’ve got 10 athletes training under me, and three have qualified. Isn’t it a big achievement? But nothing has happened so far. Fortunately, we get enough support from the Army Sports Institute, Pune. We’re happy for that,” he said.
The 38-year-old feels governments haven’t done enough for sports. “There are boys in rural areas that’re like uncut diamonds, and if we can tap their potential, we’ll make champions out of them. But not much is being done. Lots of athletes are coming from Uttarakhand. Then why is there no high-altitude training centre specifically for long-distance runners coming up in that state,” he asks. Surendra took up coaching after the 2012 London Olympics, and feels the Rio Olympics would change his ‘graph’ forever. “I want all my athletes to finish in the top 15, except Rawat. He’s destined for bigger things. Rio will be a watershed moment for my career,” he signed off.
Athletes out to earn rio berth
The cream of Indian athletes will vie to earn Rio Olympic qualifying mark at the Federation Cup beginning at Jawaharlal Nehru stadium on Wednesday. All eyes would be on 18-year-old Javelin sensation Neeraj Kumar and 400m national champion Arokia Rajiv, though it’s still unclear whether Neeraj would recover from a stiff back. Arokia would be eying to improve his personal best of 45.57s and cross the cut off mark of 45.4s. Shot putter Inderjit Singh will also be seen in action.