NOIDA: Roshan Thakur, who is the secretary general of the Winter Games Federation of India (WGFI), was sitting with a close friend and associate in a shop off Manali’s Mall Road on January 9 when he got a message saying that his daughter Aanchal Thakur had won India’s first skiing medal at an international event.

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At first, neither man could believe it, but when Aanchal called her father on WhatsApp and shared photos of her landmark medal, Thakur was elated. His daughter, 21, had won a bronze medal at the Alpine Eider 3200 Cup in Turkey, a competition organised by the International Ski Federation (ISF). Thakur had trained Aanchal for the competition, which included a stint in Europe, but a medal had not been anticipated.

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While in New Delhi for the recently concluded Adventure Sports Expo Asia, a first-of-its-kind extravaganza in India to kick off the government’s Year of Adventure Tourism campaign, Aanchal visited the TOI office to speak about her medal, what went into winning it and how it could raise the profile of winter sports in India.

Excerpts:

Aanchal, congratulations on your achievement. Is that the happiest you have felt on the range?

Yes, it was the happiest moment of my life. The struggle to win an international medal began at a young age. I was only five years old when I started skiing. I began with plastic skis and rubber boots. Then I moved to wooden skis and finally when I got my first pair of proper skis from my father, the preparation started in earnest. It has been years of hard work towards achieving something for our nation and now when I have something in my hand, I am elated.

We’ve read that your grandfather had gifted you a pair of wooden skis, which lifted your interest in skiing…

Actually, my grandfather had made those skis and given them to my father. The pair I used were also wooden, but those belonged to my cousins. They gifted them to me. Initially we did not go to the Solang Ski Resort, but as a child I would practice in my village. There was just one pair of skis and we would all wait for our turn to use them in a hurry for our ski runs down the slope.

Within hours after news broke of your medal in Turkey, there was a flood of congratulations on social media, including from some very important personalities…

Firstly, I must tell you that when I told my father about my achievement and when I showed him pictures on WhatsApp, he thought it was a souvenir. He didn’t believe that I had won a medal in Turkey. He assumed it was a souvenir given to all the participants. But when I assured him that it was a medal I had won, he was thrilled. After that, what gave me the most satisfaction were the words of our Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. When I saw his tweet my eyes filled with tears. Thereafter, so many important people wished me on social media and there can be nothing bigger for me than that. When I got back to Manali, I saw so many people smiling proudly and I realised that it was because of what I had achieved. That was a very special feeling.

We have it all here – 73 percent of the Himalayan range is in India – so what is holding back winter sports? What is the potential?

We have huge potential. We are so lucky that we have the Himalayas where we can make proper resorts for youngsters to train at. That is very important because winter sports are not an affordable prospect. Equipment is not cheap but can still be procured. What is more expensive is training. Rather than go abroad for training, if we can do that here in India it will be beneficial. The costs will come down drastically. We have the resources and landscape here to build ski resorts where Indian athletes can train.

Do you think PM Modi’s efforts can boost winter sports in India? Since he has tweeted, it is obvious that he can put in place necessary procedures to help winters sports.

Winter sports has been acknowledged by our Prime Minister so I am confident that the Centre will support winter sports. It is my hope that wherever in India there is potential to make ski resorts, they are indeed made so that the young generation of winter sport athletes can get the opportunity to train. With the government’s help, India can become a real force in winter sports.

Where specifically can winter sports be developed?

We have several places in the mountains with potential. The Solang Valley in Manali is foremost. If chairlifts and snow grooming machines are installed, the slopes there can become very good. One of Asia’s best resorts is at Auli in Uttarakhand. It has a fantastic slope. The ISF was due to arrange an international skiing event there recently but this unfortunately had to be postponed due to lack of snowfall. Then there is Gulmarg, which has good facilities and grooming machines. The mountains there are also very good for skiing so if some more resorts are built, it can be beneficial.

How do you feel this medal will impact winter sports in India?

Before this medal there was not much media coverage of winter sports in India, but I think this medal can be the turning point. There has been a lot of coverage in the media since then, and with the support of the government I believe winter sports can get a facelift. Before the media, it is the government which can support is. With that, the media will automatically support us. The main support has to come from the government.

You chose a tough path, that of making a name for yourself in winter sports in India. You can be a role model for kids. What is your message to them?

If we talk of sport in India, then people are crazy about cricket. But if you talk about struggle, then cricket also struggled. It took many years for cricket to become the most followed sport in India, to become a priority. If others like me struggle and work hard to put winter sports on the map, then I hope that skiing also become a craze. There was a point where young skiing enthusiasts started to walk away from skiing, because they did not see a future. But after this medal, I think many will return to skiing and we will see others start to ski.

As a career, is skiing financially viable? What should parents of potential skiers be aware of?

Skiing is an expensive sport. Our equipment exceeds Rs 5 lakh. Then because of the lack of facilities and infrastructure in India, we need to travel to Europe to train. High-level coaches in Europe charge 200 Euros a day. We cannot afford to train more than three months at a time. Hence it is my plea to the government to make resorts here in India so that we do not have to travel to Europe and pay 200 Euros a day for expert coaching.

Who were your role models?

My father was my first inspiration. He used to tell me and my brother about techniques and how to ski. My brother was a much better skier, much faster than me and I used to observe him closely to improve my skills. I just wanted to become as good as my brother some day.
What does your brother have to say now?

(Smiles) He is very proud of me.
What are your interests apart from winter sports?

Apart from skiing I love to paint. I paint a lot and have been doing this since childhood. I have painted the walls of my flat in Chandigarh. I also like to dance and I’ve done some acting too. Last year I was in a Punjabi music album, as a model. I am also a fashion designer, but at this stage only for my family and myself (smiles). I’ve always been inclined towards arts and crafts. I keep making something small from whatever I get my hands on.
Source : timesofindia