Girl power - Indian women who continue to break the barriers
It has truly been the era of ‘girl power’ in Indian sports – Indian women have given the men a run for their money on the sporting field across the world. From the tennis court to the football field, the fairer sex reigned supreme through sheer grit, tenacity and resilience.
No longer in the shadow of their male counterparts, the girl brigade has emerged as a force to reckon with, and grabbed some of the biggest headlines. In a country where female foeticide still looms large, these women, through their myriad accomplishments, undoubtedly brought about a change in the Indian society’s perception of women in sports.
Here’s a look at the top five Indian sportswomen –
1. Saina Nehwal
The Chinese shuttlers had an iron grip over the numero uno ranking since December 2010. And it took an Indian woman to end that staggering 52-month stranglehold and she was none other than Saina Nehwal, winning the first Olympic medal for India in badminton.
Nehwal’s career was already embellished with glittering achievements and the Olympic bronze is the biggest of them all. Despite being one of the most revered badminton stars for the last five years, the top ranking had remained elusive for the girl hailing from Hyderabad.
But Saina changed all that this season. Leaving the Gopichand Badminton Academy, she joined forces with Vimal Kumar in Bangalore towards the end of 2014. The new partnership culminated in a historic moment for Indian sports. On April 2, 2015, Nehwal reached the pinnacle of the world rankings and became the first Indian woman shuttler to ever scale the summit.
Her exploits also included silver medals at the All-England Open and the World Championships for the first time, besides winning the India Open Superseries.
2. Sania Mirza
She came, she saw, she conquered – Sania Mirza was unstoppable in her all-conquering year! The Indian tennis star had her annus mirabilis in 2015 which saw her attain the doubles World No. 1 ranking and capture an incredible 10 titles.
Nine of those triumphs came in tandem with the five-time Grand Slam champion Martina Hingis, with whom she teamed up in March. The pairing worked like a dream as they perfectly complemented each other, and the Mirza-Hingis juggernaut rolled on, flattening every opposition on their way to title glory at the Wimbledon, the US Open and the WTA Finals among others.
The pair have started the 2016 in similar fashion, and they have already added three titles to their names, including the Australian Open. Their incredible 41-match unbeaten run was eventually halted by Russian pair Elena Vesnina and Daria Kasatkina, but the World No.1 will still walk into the French Open as the favorites to complete the 'Santina slam'.
3. Deborah Herold
Deborah Herold was on Car Nicobar island on that fateful day, as Tsunami waves, as high as 30ft tall, swept across the place. The 9-year-old survived by clinging on to a tree for a whole day.
Back in December, she became the highest ranked Indian woman cyclist in history. In October, the 20-year-old became the first ever Indian cyclist to win the women's elite section at the Taiwan Cup and ended with one gold, three silver and one bronze medal. Her consistent performances have also helped the Indian team climb up to 13 and become the highest ranked Asian country in the 500m time trial, beating China at 15.
In the Track Asia Cup, which was a three-day event held in November at New Delhi, Deborah won a gold medal in the women's elite sprint event on the final day, beating South Korea's Cho Sun Young with a timing of 13.614 seconds. That was her third medal in the event, which helped India to a third place finish with 11 medals.
She also became the first-ever Indian cyclist to win in the women's elite section at the 2015 Taiwan Cup, held at the Hsin Chu Velodrome, back in October. She ended the event with one gold, three silver and one bronze medal.
She added one more feather to her cap, by becoming the first Indian to seal a berth in the 2016 Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) Track Cycling World Championships. Needless to say, her success is bringing countless fans to the sport that is still considered as a recreation, rather than a profession, in India.
4. Mary Kom
From winning a silver medal as an 18-year-old in the 2001 Women's World Amateur Boxing Championship, to the bronze medal at the 2012 London Olympics - Mark Kom's journey from remote Churachandpur district of Manipur to the helm of Indian boxing is something even Bollywood has struggled to depict. The 33-year-old has announced that she will hang up her gloves after the upcoming Rio Olympics, and she hopes to sign off by achieving her biggest dream – an Olympic gold.
It is hard to fathom the strain and stress of juggling her sporting career and her responsibilities towards her family and kids, every time someone counts her out, she comes back better, and stronger, than before.
5. The Indian women’s hockey team
Indian sports had another momentous feat when the women’s hockey team qualified for the Olympics for the first time since 1980. Despite repeated setbacks, the girls rose like a phoenix to secure their appearance at the mega quadrennial Games, after a long gap of 36 years.
The hunt for that elusive berth was fraught with drama as India had to depend on the results of the EuroHockey Championships, after having finished fifth at the Hockey World League (HWL) Semi-Finals. With England and the Netherlands – both of whom had already bagged a Rio place – advancing to the summit clash of the continental qualifiers, the coveted Olympic berth was awarded to India, who were the highest-ranked team, among those who were yet to qualify for the Olympics, at the HWL Semi-finals.
It was, without a doubt, one of Indian hockey’s most memorable moments. Indian hockey fighting for two medals at Rio – in men’s as well as women’s – truly underlines the revival of the sport that has brought the country eight Olympic gold medals in the past.
Apart from these go-getters, there were many others who kept the Indian Tricolour flying high at major international meets. Aditi Chauhan made the nation proud when she became the first woman from the country to be signed up by a top English club – West Ham United’s ladies team. Archer Deepika Kumari returned to form and helped the women’s recurve team secure a Rio Olympic quota, while gymnast Dipa Karmakar rewrote record books as the first Indian to qualify for the finals of World Championships.
In shooting, Apurvi Chandela was the standout performer, who ensured her Rio appearance through a bronze medal at the Changwon World Cup. Lalita Babar did the same in athletics in her milestone year, as she grabbed Rio tickets in steeplechase and marathon and also featured in a World Championship final.
Special mention
Sprinter Dutee Chand deserves a special mention because she won a far bigger battle. In 2014, the prodigious talent saw her Commonwealth Games dreams getting crushed when she was tested for hyperandrogenism. The audacious Chand refused to give up and her unwavering determination was rewarded this year when the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) gave her the green signal to compete again.
It was a landmark judgment as the CAS suspended the IAAF’s rules which bar women with high levels of testosterone from competing. No doubt it was a red letter day for the world of athletics.
Another female star who deserves a special is one of the longest serving athlete of this nation – Oinam Bembem Devi. The 35-year-old Manipur born midfielder has been the lynchpin of the Indian national team since making her debut at the age of 15 in the Asian Women's Championship.
Women's football has struggled to survive in this nation, in fact it is incredible that in the in the year 2016 we are yet to have a national league for the sport. Yet, Bembem Devi has managed to rise above these restrains, and went to Maldives to play for New Radiant FC. She hung up her boots after the recently concluded South Asian Games, but only after guiding India to a silver medal. Yet, after serving her nation for 20 years, she walked away into the sunset without any recognition or adulation, from media or the people of her nation.
Each of these Indian girls is a shining beacon of hope for the millions of women still struggling to break free from the shackles of patriarchal society. For the countless young girls aiming to stand on their own feet, and have a voice of their own, these achievers are a source of inspiration. That sport does not belong solely to the male bastion is what these undaunted ladies have helped to establish.
Most importantly, this grand success of Indian sportswomen will further help to alter the middle class mindset and we will see an influx of girls in the world of sports. And that is probably one of the biggest signs of a nation’s progress.
