“I was first introduced to artistic skating at the age of five. It’s a unique sport that incorporates choreographed dance moves while sliding on wheels. Being an active kid, this medium became the perfect way to tap into my potential, growing up. Slowly, with a booming enthusiasm for it, I started participating in professional competitions, only to bag the gold year after year. By 2015, I was already a nine-time consecutive gold medalist though it felt like just the beginning. Funnily enough, my awareness of International tournaments and world championships for artistic skaters too kicked a bit late. But since then, my practice has also witnessed a peaking intensity.

Now practice meant utmost discipline and sacrifice. Infact, when you dig into the life of any sportsperson, all the other facets of their life would revolve around their training. Even an interruption by a few days could deteriorate the performance quality. As for me, I haven’t taken a real family vacation in over 13 years. My routine compulsorily involves atleast one training session a day, regardless of whether I have an exam or something else that’s key.

However, a sad reality here is that people often misconceive the field to be easy, as it isn’t a conventional sport we hear of everyday. But this couldn’t be further from the truth. Solo skating, in fact, has a dynamic syllabus, elaborated through a 1000 page rulebook that changes on a yearly basis. This means that all the techniques one masters almost becomes redundant the following annum. Therefore, to be on top, it calls for constant research work on styles, footwork etc.

Yet, no matter the challenges, with 107 medals to my credit today, I can assure you that that skating has truly changed my life. A memory that I’ll forever cherish would be winning my first-ever Asian Games medals in 2012, especially as one of the youngest participants. Ofcourse, there have been a few rocky situations here and there. Nevertheless, with the most supportive parents one could ask for, the journey in its entirety has also been extremely fulfilling. Going forward, my aim is to give back as much to the sport and train my students well enough to keep bagging the golds.”

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