Dipa Karmakar wants to compensate CWG miss with a medal in Asian Games
After missing the upcoming Commonwealth Games due to an injury, Dipa Karmakar has promised to perform better at the Asian Games later this year. The 24-year-old gymnast was forced out of the Gold Coast event owing to a knee injury that she had picked up last year and underwent a surgery as well.
Karmakar became the first Indian female gymnast to take part in the Olympics and she didn’t disappoint either by finishing at a historic fourth position in the women’s vault. However, things have started going downhill from thereafter as she suffered an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury, which forced her from not taking part in the CWG games.
“I am very sad that I am not going
“But injury happens in a sportsperson’s life and we have to face it. My rehabilitation is over and I have started training for the Asian Games,” she said.
Karmakar had pulled off the Produnova vault to perfection at the Rio Olympics that made her the heartthrob of the nation overnight, but managing to pull it off with same intensity now after suffering ACL, is a doubt. However, she has stated that she was focusing on all four events — vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor now.
“Once a gymnast learns something (Produnova), that will remain forever. But I am trying to learn other things also. Everything is going on well now. With the love of the people of this country, I hope to get medals in the international events. I don’t want to finish fourth. My focus is on the Asian Games,” said Karmakar.
Recently, another young women gymnast, Aruna Budda Reddy became the first Indian to win an individual medal at the Gymnastics World Cup by clinching a bronze medal in Melbourne and Karmakar has heaped praise on Aruna’s achievement.
“Since 2011 whenever Aruna was in the national camp with (Bisweshwar) Nandi sir and from 2014 to 2017, we trained together and we were room partners. She was very close to me. Recently, she went for foreign training for one month. But the two vaults she did there in Melbourne, she had learnt it in India under Nandi sir.
“I feel very proud that my training and room partner won a bronze in a Gymnastics World Cup. She kept on telling me that she was working hard but not getting any result. I kept on telling her that one day or the other she will get the medal. I hope she wins a gold in Gold Coast,” Karmakar added.