HYDERABAD: Deekshita, Ayesha Fatima, Mounika, Ramya, Supriya and Ruksar Begum were all excited on Saturday when they saw the waters of Hussain Sagar. Well, they are part of Project Naavika of the Yacht Club of Hyderabad and that means they are almost destined to become sailing champions.
Founded by Suheim Sheikh as a not-for-profit club, The Yacht Club of Hyderabad (YCH) has successfully completed 10 years since its inception in 2009. Living by the motto “Dignity through Sports,” Suheim focuses on providing training for children from the economically weaker sections and has been victorious in shaping their lives in a better way.
The YCH also caters to the educational and nutritional needs of the children. "We select girls mainly from Udhav School in Rasoolpoora, which is run by the alumni of IIM Ahmedabad and several other government schools in Hyderabad and Telangana. Currently, the club is focussing on Project Naavika (launched in 2016) which aims to develop confidence and dignity among young girls, providing scholarships in education and improving employability. A huge selection drive is going to be held by Praveen Kumar IPS shortly in which they are going to select girls from 140 schools across Telangana, picking one girl per school. After the shortlist, 30 girls will undergo training for the next five years to participate in the upcoming Youth Olympics," he informs.
The club also trains the children in skating and swimming which are the mandatory skills required to train for sailing. Deekshita, Ayesha Fatima, Mounika, Ramya, Supriya and Ruksar Begum are all trainees at the junior level who come from underprivileged families.
All of them developed interest and passion towards this sport by seeing the senior girls reaching new heights in the sport of sailing. "We balancing academics with sailing with equal determination and we are proud to be sailing champions," they say. Their mission is to serve the government and to look after their parents at the later stage of life.
Little prodigy Ayesha Fatima proudly shares, "I want to buy a Ferrari one day." While the senior girls help these girls with training, Suheim teaches them the core skills like tacking, jibing, knots etc. "He motivates us to work harder each day. He provides us with many facilities. The only thing he expects from us is commitment and conviction," she adds.
Hailing from a farmer’s family in Pagidyala village, Sirisha is a national-level gold medalist in sailing. She has won several accolades in the Monsoon Regatta, Telangana Regatta and also at the Marve National Sailing Championship.
"I want to excel in academics and become a coach like Suheim sir to train more girls like me," she adds. Vaishnavi, who is at number four in India, has been shortlisted for the Asian Championships. She plans to join the Navy after winning several championships internationally. The Yacht club of Hyderabad says it is proud to be producing some exceptional champions representing the state and the country.