KIYG 2023: Farmer’s daughter Durga Singh enters record book with 1500m gold
Chennai: As a sports-obsessed child, Durga Singh used to run in the open spaces around the fields in his remote village Belwa Thakurai in Bihar’s Gopalganj district. Coming from an area with little sporting background, Durga’s father Shambhu Sharan Singh, a wheat farmer, was the only person who encouraged her.
“I have faced a lot of challenges. There was no interest in sports in my family, except my father, who always said, ‘Go wherever you want, do whatever you want.’ Only they supported me, that’s why I am here,” said an elated Durga after breaking the 1500m Games record with a timing of 4 minutes 29.22 seconds at the sixth Khelo India Youth Games in Chennai on Wednesday.
The Class 10 student had won the gold medal in 1500 meters in the 38th Junior National Athletics Championships in Coimbatore last year with a timing of 4 minutes 38.29 seconds.
The fourth of five siblings, Durga also played Kabaddi and football in her childhood but her hero was running. She was such a fan of PT Usha and Usain Bolt that she had their photographs printed and framed in her room.
His talent was recognized at least in his school. “I used to be taken along with senior students to matches. People would fight to have me in their team.”
Medals will come faster in local competitions. But at that time he did not realize their value. “I would come first or second, bring home the medal and throw it aside. I wouldn’t care much about it because then no one at home would give importance to my achievements. Relatives who came home would be surprised to see There were lies being spread around about how the medals would be.”
Gradually, the 17-year-old’s talent became more recognized. He visited Patliputra Sports Complex in Patna to train under the guidance of coach Rakesh Singh and never looked back after that. After this his attitude towards medals also changed.
She said, “Then I realized how much fame you can earn if you win a medal. I became more determined and started working harder. Now I want to make my country proud.” (ANI)
