Shourya’s brave journey from ACL pain to bronze gain

The word Shourya in Sanskrit means bravery And it seems only fitting that 17 years ago IPS officers Rupali and Avinash Ambure decided to name their daughter Shourya On Sunday just 11 months after suffering a careerthreatening ACL injury Shourya became the first Indian woman to win an athletics medal at the Youth Olympic Games clinching bronze in the 100m hurdles in Dakar SenegalldquoIn the last four years all I could think of was going to the Youth Olympics But when I tore my ACL in December while practising hurdles I thought my dream was shattered I underwent surgery at Aspetar Qatar in January Typically ACL surgery requires around nine months of recovery but I had only eight months before the Youth Nationals where the winner would qualify for the Youth OlympicsI was inspired by how Murali Sreeshankar long jumper recovered from his ACL injury and went on to win silver at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games So I worked extra hard got back into shape in six months and competed in the district and state meets before the nationalsrdquo Thanebased Shourya who clocked a personal best of 1359 seconds in Dakar tells middayAs they say fortune favours the brave and Shourya had some luck on her side too ldquoThe initial national meet was held on September 3 in Ludhiana but I tripped and fell in the final However the girl who won gold did not have an Indian passport so a retrial was held on September 21 in Bengaluru where I came out on toprdquo says Shourya a Class XII science student at Universal High School ThaneShourya with her IPS officer parents mum Rupali and dad AvinashInterestingly athletics was not Shouryarsquos first introduction to the world outside studies as her mother Rupali reveals ldquoI always wanted my daughter to take up extracurricular activities So when she was in kindergarten I enrolled her in music and Kathak classes but she would often doze off However when we sent her to Ajit Kulkarnirsquos AIM Sports Foundation she took an immediate liking to athletics and would happily wake up at 4 am to trainrdquo says Rupali 47 Superintendent of Police Operations at the Maharashtra State Security CorporationHer father Avinash a Commandant with State Reserve Police Force Group 8 stressed that the couple never put any additional pressure on their daughter ldquoWe gave her complete freedom to choose her career We allowed her to follow her passion and simply supported her throughoutrdquo says Avinash 47Shourya remains grateful to her parents admitting that their personality traits have rubbed off on her ldquoHard work patience and perseverance are some of the traits I get from them Watching them serve the country has motivated me to make my country proud in my own wayrdquo says Shourya who has also won two silvers at the Asian Youth Games and a bronze at the Asian U18 ChampionshipsThe doting parents are particularly proud of their daughterrsquos humility ldquoThe best thing about her is that she is getting humbler each day Despite her success she has no ego Even after winning bronze in Dakar she was busy consoling some of her competitorsrdquo says RupaliWhile her Youth Olympics success is yet to sink in Shourya is already planning her next steps ldquoIrsquom looking forward to the World School Games next month followed by the World U20 and Asian U20 Athletics Championships over the next couple of yearsrdquo Shourya signs offShouryarsquos dedication and discipline set her apart says Coach KulkarniShourya Amburersquos coach Ajit Kulkarni 53 believes the 17yearoldrsquos dedication and discipline from an early age convinced him that she was destined for successAjit KulkarnildquoShourya was six when she joined my AIM Sports Foundation but her dedication and discipline always stood out She has always been very coachable and thatrsquos a gift from God Not every athlete is so open to feedback and advicerdquo said Kulkarni who has been coaching for 26 yearsKulkarni however admitted that a podium finish at the Youth Olympic Games is a surprise considering the strong field ldquoWe knew we could finish in the top five but to win bronze in a field featuring the worldrsquos topranked hurdlers is really specialrdquo added KulkarniFourNo of international medals won by Shourya Ambure one bronze at Youth Olympics two silvers at Asian Youth Games one bronze at Asian U18 Crsquoships