Coming from a small town in Haryana, a mason’s daughter with no sports background and a makeshift high jump pit made up of sacks of hay has won a silver medal in the recent Asian U-20 Championships in Yecheon, Korea. The story of 16-year-old high jumper Pooja has drama, emotion and the determination to overcome all odds.
Pooja’s journey to the top started with a makeshift high jump pit where a bamboo stick was held in place by weights for a bar and a school physical education teacher. This may not seem like the perfect recipe for success, but the teenager from Haryana’s Fatehabad district overthrew every odd, including the barriers erected by the male chauvinistic society.
The 16-year-old rewrote both the U-18 and U-20 national records and registered a best attempt of 1.82m. This made Pooja India’s current season leader across all age-groups.
The father of the wiry jumper, Hansraj, who works almost 10 hours a day for a meagre daily wage of Rs 500, is extremely proud of his daughter’s achievements and is also in awe of her ability, even though he has absolutely no idea about the sport.
“I just keep asking her how she does it. Khade khade mere sir ke upar se taap jayegi ye toh (She can just leap over my head easily). It amazes me how she achieves that much height,” Hansraj said in an interview with The Indian Express.
Pooja’s coach Balwan Patra, who runs an academy in a neighbouring village with 30-odd students, is probably the most suitable person to answer Hansraj’s innocent question. Patra believes that it is Pooja’s explosiveness that helps her get so much height.
Recalling Pooja’s first day at his academy, Patra said that when Pooja first walked into his academy with Hansraj, she just wanted to learn yoga, however, as days passed, he realised that the teenager had a lot of strength in the lower half, especially her calves. Following this, he shared his expertise with her and highlighted that the high jump might be her calling.
But nothing comes easy in life. There was a big hurdle blocking the path between Pooja and her accolades. “We didn’t have a jumping pit,” said Patra.
In order to bridge this gap, Patra came up with a workable idea, a jugaad. “We got hay from the fields nearby and stitched them in sacks. We used a bamboo stick as a bar. That is where she learned the basics of jumping,” Patra recalled.
The gifted high jumper had to practice on this makeshift pit for a year until her coach’s friend gifted them a rundown landing pit. However, the bamboo bar remained.
“Usually when you hit the bar while jumping, it falls off. But in our set-up, the whole unit comes down,” said Patra, adding that whenever this happens the other trainees at the academy burst into laughter.
It was not just the hard work of Pooja that helped her carve her way to the top. It was also her determination and her ability to grasp matters quickly.
Patra highlighted that while most young jumpers begin with the standard scissor jump as it takes a long while to learn the Fosbury Flop, Pooja mastered it within three months at the age of 12.
The duo recalled a peculiar incident that took place at age-group competitions a few years ago. The federation did not allow junior jumpers to use the Fosbury technique because if you land awkwardly on the neck, you can get injured. Pooja overcame this hurdle amazingly by coming up with her own unique technique – the high jumper leaped using the scissor method but landed with the Fosbury technique.
Sahana Kumari, whose national senior high jump record has remained untouched for over a decade, had a good look at Pooja during the last month’s preparatory national camp in Bengaluru.
In a conversation with The Indian Express, Sahana said that the height Pooja was getting at this age with just five strides is unmatchable, adding that, even elite women athletes take 8-10 strides. “I spoke to Pooja and told her that she should gradually move to the standard 8-10 strides that will really boost her jumps,” said Sahana.
The Sports Authority of India coach was so impressed by her work ethic and her explosiveness. She also expressed her confidence in her and predicted that the teenager will break her 1.92m record. Sahana, who is also the South Asian Games champion, also added that if Pooja trains scientifically without injuries, the national record is just a matter of time. Pooja has this natural talent and hunger to do well, said Sahana.