JK News Today

Jammu, March 20:

Shweta Thakur, a 26-years old national Judo player from Jammu and Kashmir wants to open her own venture of Private Judo Training School to train more and more talent in the field. This idea came to her mind after she failed to get a government job befitting her expertise. Talented and passionate Shweta recently won Silver Medal in Senior National Judo Championship held at Jammu  this March and had a final fight with Olympian Garima Choudhary from Haryana. She was the only player from J&K to have won a medal in this championship.

 Q1: How many national medal you have won till date?

Thakur: I have won a dozen medals in national games and I am the highest medal winner in Judo in both boys and girls category. I won my first national medal in 2004 in sub-junior national games at Goa. After that I won consecutive bronze medals in junior national games from 2005. When I entered the senior category, I won two Gold, two Silver and one bronze in All India Inter-University Judo Championship. Then in senior national championship I won two Gold and one Silver.

Q2:  When you started playing Judo and why?

Thakur: I am not belonging to any sports background, my father was a businessmen. I was too fatty and my parents sent me to the stadium just for fitness in 2004, when I was just 13-years-old. But I choose to play Judo and then Judo became my passion.

Q3: As you are a national player, what about facilities for training and others at government level?

Thakur: Unfortunately, I got a serious injury in 2015 during a match at Judo Hall in MA Stadium and it was due to torn mats. The infrastructure is not good. But, now we are having hopes from our Secretary Sports Council, Mr Wahid Parra, who is young and energetic and understand the problems of sports fraternity.

Q4: You are one of the top Judo players in J&K, then why couldn’t you get state government job?

Thakur: I have already applied for and my file is already in process. I also got state award in 2016 and Sher-e-Kashmir Award on January 26, this year. I have also done one year Diploma in coaching from National Institute of Sports (NIS) Patiala. I got a job as coach in Gwaliar, but I want to serve Jammu.

Q5: What are your future plans?

Thakur: I am preparing hard for August 2018 Asian Games  and Common Wealth Games in November 2018. After that I will plan further in pursuit of career in the field.