CHENNAI: Vadgaon Maval is a small nagar panchayat around 40km from Pune in Maharashtra. It's famous for Jain and Potoba Maharaj temples. But the town holds a special place in the country's history as it was here where the first Anglo-Maratha war named Battle of Wadgaon was fought.
Tukojirao Holkar and general Mahadji Shinde led the Maratha army, which inflicted a defeat on the East India Company forcing them to retreat.
Given its rich history, residents here still believe in staying fit and it is visible around the area. A large number of gymnasiums are operational. This also means children here start lifting weights even before reaching the age of 10. Shubham Todkar was no different. He started accompanying his father Tanaji to the gym at the age of eight. In the next five years, he started training for weightlifting.
He went on to become the first national medallist from the village in weightlifting. He had won three medals (2 silver and 1 gold) in the nationals so far. Shubham added yet another feather to his cap when he won the 61kg selection trials held at the NIS Patiala to book a place in the national squad for the Asian Championships scheduled in Jinju, South Korea from May 3 to 13. The continental event is also one of the five competitions wherein lifters have to compete to earn points in their bid to qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
"Vadgaon Maval is known for its temples but more than that it was the Anglo-Maratha war that gave recognition to us. Maybe that is the reason why people here are health conscious. My father was a powerlifter and he encouraged me to take up bodybuilding. Once I started that, my coach at Maharashtra Sports Club, Vikram Singh Deshmukh, started teaching me lifting techniques. I got hooked to it with time," Shubham told this daily from Patiala.
A silver in junior national in 2015-16 helped him find a place in the national camp. However, a knee injury in 2017 meant he had to undergo surgery and miss the senior nationals. Shubham then made a comeback winning two silver in the nationals later. The medals also fetched him a job with the Indian Railways. "The job of ticket collector helped me a lot as I got in touch with Railway coach P Rangaswamy sir. He taught me the importance of diet and supplements. He also worked on my techniques helping me improve." The hard work paid dividends as he won 61kg gold in the senior nationals held in Nagercoil, Tamil Nadu from December 29, 2022, to January 7, 2023.
The top finish once again landed him at the NIS Patiala for the national camp. "A stint at the national camp always helps as you get expert guidance from coaches. A good diet and supplements helped improve my performance. My snatch has improved by 2-3kgs in the last two months. I have also started lifting 150kg and above in clean and jerk consistently ever since," he said.
In Nagercoil, he lifted 119 in snatch and 152 in C&J to pocket gold. He bettered that in the selection trials by lifting 122 in snatch and 152 in C&J. However, he wishes to improve it further. "The target is 130 in snatch and 160 in C&J. If I can do that, I can win a medal in the Asian Games and even qualify for the Olympics. Hopefully, I can achieve the target," signed off Shubham.
Already the first national medallist from his village, Shubham can now aim to take it a step further by winning international medals in the upcoming competitions.