Hangzhou [China], October 4 (ANI): “Tough times never last; tough people do” this well-known quote by Robert H. Schuller was exemplified by Indian racewalker Ram Baboo as he persevered within the face of overwhelming hardship and walked his approach to glory in the future at a time, one step at a time.
The 35m combined race stroll bronze medallist, Ram Baboo opened up about his journey of constructing a comeback within the sport after working within the MGNREGA scheme along with his father within the lockdown.
Indian athletes Majnu Rani and Baboo secured a bronze medal within the 35m combined race stroll on the ongoing nineteenth Asian Games in Hangzhou on Wednesday.
Baboo has clearly reached the higher stage of race-walking circles. But, his highway to glory was something however a cakewalk. He needed to work as an MGNREGA employee through the COVID-19 lockdown.
Talking to ANI, Baboo talked about this time period in his life and mentioned, “In 2012, I saw the news of the London Olympics on TV and I thought maybe I could do better in sports. Then I took running as a sport. I suffered a knee injury in 2018 so that’s why I started to do race walking. Garibi kuch bhi karva sakti hai [Poverty can make you do anything].”But COVID-19 had a devastating affect on everybody, together with Ram Baboo’s hopes and aspirations. At this time of want, he was compelled to place his household’s wants forward of his personal.
Baboo was a primary instance of laborious work, as he prevailed within the nineteenth Asian Games to clinch a bronze medal.
“During the lockdown, I had to work with my father in MGNREGA. Your hard time motivates you to do better lot. No human being can teach you what time teaches you. A hard time was like an inspiration for me. I started my training back in 2020 July and travelled to Bhopal. At that time most of the stadiums were closed so I had to train on the road,” Baboo mentioned,”My childhood was filled with struggle… I come from a very backward area… It was my mother’s dream that no matter how we are living today, our son should have a good life… It is a matter of pride for me, my family, and my village that I won a bronze medal in the Asian Games…” he added.
Clocking timings of 5:51:14 hours, the Indian duo secured a bronze and continued the nation’s tremendous run in athletics.
The gold medal went to China (5:16:41 hours) and the silver medal was bagged by Japan (5:22:11 hours). (ANI)