During her school days, the bicycle was just a mode of transportation to and from school for Kezia Varghese. But now her bicycle is helping her reach destinations she had never dreamt of going to.
Training at the Kerala State Sports Council’s Sports Hostel in Chempazhanthy, the 23-year-old has rode her bike into the Indian women’s cycling team establishing herself as a permanent fixture for India’s international competitions for the past one year.
“During my school days, I wanted to participate in athletics, but failed to get selected. As I used to cycle around 12kms daily, I decided to try my luck in cycling with Sports Council’s selection trial coming up,” Kezia told ‘Express’ on Sunday.
But instead of the muddy road between her home in Kochara and SNDP School in Pothinkandam, Idukki, Kezia now rides on some of the best cycling velodromes in the world from Mexico to Scotland.
“I would not have believed if someone told me I would represent my country at the Asian and Commonwealth Games,” Kezia said. “My experience with the Indian team has increased my passion for the sports,” she added. Kezia said that she has enjoyed training sessions under Indian national team coach R K Sharma. “It is very rewarding to visualise your training and finding strengths and weaknesses,” she said.
Kezia was one among the nine cyclists who were recruited to the Sports Council’s Sports Hostel at Murukumpuzha in 2004 and has been trained under coach Chandran Chettiyar since.
At the 35th National Games, Kezia managed to clinch two gold medals - in women’s Keirin race and team sprint - and a silver in 500m time trial while she already won a silver in the event at the 67th National Track Cycling Championship held at LNCPE post-Games.
Now the youngster is looking forward to improve on a fifth place finish she achieved in the last edition at the Asian Track Cycling Championship at the forthcoming edition of the championship slated to be held in January 2016 in Japan.
Having won a gold in the National Games for Kerala, Kezia is earmarked to get a government job if the State Government keeps its word. Though she is excited to be offered the job, she is wary of it too.
“It is great that the government is offering the job and I am more than happy to accept it. But hearing the ordeals of other athletes including my colleagues Mahitha Mohan and Rejani V, I am wary that it will affect my career in cycling,” Kezia said.