As Indian gymnasts begin their Commonwealth Games campaign in Glasgow on Friday, two young athletes from Puri, Odisha, will be looking to make their mark on one of the biggest stages of their careers.Tapan Mohanty and Tapeshwarnath Das both took up gymnastics at a young age after joining the State Sports Hostel in the coastal city. Pursuing a sport that still lacks widespread popularity in India has never been easy, but they kept their heads down, trusted the process and are now among the four Indian men’s gymnasts set to compete at the Commonwealth Games.For Mohanty, making the Commonwealth Games team is the culmination of years of hard work, and the youngster is quietly confident after an encouraging performance at last month’s Asian Championships.“It was a great experience and I did well there. I competed against Olympians and international medalists, and I learned a lot by seeing how they prepare and compete,” said Mohanty.The gymnast, whose father was a servant in the Jagannath Temple and a former state-level wrestler, believes that competing against the world’s best has also changed his perspective.“Seeing them win medals made me realize that I can do it too. It gave me confidence and reinforced the importance of staying focused and working hard,” he added.A total gymnast, Mohanty believes her best chance lies in the floor exercise, where she hopes to qualify for the finals and challenge for a medal. He had also represented India at the 2023 Asian Games.Preparing for an event of this magnitude meant weeks of meticulous planning. After the Asian Championships, the Indian team traveled to Essex in England for a training camp at South Essex Gymnastics Club under coaches Scott Hann and Anthony Wise.For Das, the stint in Essex has been invaluable and he believes it will make a significant difference once the competition kicks off in Glasgow.“The facilities are excellent, and we enter with the same equipment we will use during the competition,” Das had said while training there.“We also had enough time to adapt to the weather and conditions here. If we had traveled directly from India, the adjustment would have been much more difficult. Spending a longer period here really helped our preparation.”A vault specialist, Das believes overseas training has further honed his strongest event which he loves for the strength and explosiveness associated with it.“Success in the vault depends on the technique and the execution of the skill, and I have developed it through years of consistent training,” he said.In addition to hours of practice in the gym, the two athletes also incorporate meditation into their daily routine to stay mentally composed. Equally important has been the bond they share, having grown up in the same town and trained together for nearly a decade.Years after starting their journey at State Sports Hostel in Puri, Das and Mohanty are now on the brink of the biggest competition of their career. Along with Rakesh Patra, their former and now coach, they will hope that the road from Odisha to Glasgow ends with a performance to remember.
- Team: Men’s Team: Tapan Mohanty, Tapeshwaranath Das, Swathish KP, Yogeshwar Singh
- Women’s team: Protistha Samanta, Pranati Nayak, Nishka Agarwal, Eshitaa Rewale