CHENNAI: The last time India won a medal in Judo in the Commonwealth Games was in Manchester in 2002. The agile Akram Shah fought his heart out to win silver in men’s 60 kg category. Thereafter, Judo was excluded in the next two editions.
The Japanese combat form-cum-Olympic sport will be making a comeback this time in Glasgow. On a quick glance, it is a sort of redemption for the sport which was inducted into the Commonwealth Games’ index in 1990. Since then, it was left out of the schedule on four occasions.
As far as the Indians are concerned, they will be considering the Glasgow sojourn more as an exposure trip than a medal winning outing. India will be fielding a 14-member team, seven male and seven female judokas.
In the men’s category, Avtar Singh will spearhead the challenge. He is the highest-ranked Indian in the world, placed 131st. Pitted in the -90kg category, Avtar will be hoping to continue his good run of form that started with gold at the Lusofonia Games as well as the South Asian Judo Championships this year. The 22-year-old Punjab strongman will also be hoping for an easy draw. The weight category will be graced by the participation of some big names like Britain’s Gary Hall and Matthew Purssey.
Meanwhile, Navjot Chana, who had bagged gold at the South Asian Championship, will be fancying his chances in the men’s 60kg category. The Punjab policeman will be pitted against a field comprising current British champion Ashley McKenzie among others. The 30-year-old Chana is high on confidence and is eagerly awaiting July 24, when he will hit the mat. “I have 12 years of international experience and that alone is enough to give me confidence. But still it would be tough as top contenders will be there and every one would be fancying their chances,” he told TNIE.
Manjee Nandal (-60 kg) is another prospect. He had won the bronze at Lusofonia Games in Goa earlier this year and will be pitted in a field comprising Canada’s World Cup winner Antoine Bouchard and Steven Brown of Australia, who ranks 30th in the world and second in the Commonwealth.
In the women’s category, L Sushila Devi (-48kg), TH Kalpana Devi (-52kg) and Shivani (-57kg) have been held as favourites by the national judo federation but the hope seems far fetched. Sushila will be joined by Commonwealth’s numero uno, Australian Chloe Rayner and the second best New Zealand’s Chanel Kavanagh in the draw. Kalpana Devi, who won gold at Lusofonia Games and a bronze at Tashkent Grand Prix in 2013, will be eying to reach the semifinals, only if she gets easy draw. Hannah Trotter of Australia leads the field in terms of ranking.
Sunibala Devi (-70kg) and Jina Devi (-78kg) will also be keen on putting up a good show. Jina, who hails from Manipur, is an assistant sub-inspector with CISF. The 27-year-old said that the rigorous training at Sports Authority of India’s Bhopal centre during the run-up to the games has kept the judokas in good stead. “Every person is talented to win a medal. But the result depends on the day as well as the opponent. All we can do is to do well and leave the rest to fate,” Jina said.
The word Judo means ‘gentle way’ but given the chance of India in the gala event, it may prove to be just the opposite.