Latest news with #Balwan
Indian Express
3 days ago
- Sport
- Indian Express
Despite torn spikes, teenager Pooja leaps to high jump gold at Asian Athletics – and is leading a revolution in her village
Even a torn spike, patched up using Kinesiology tape, didn't deter teenage high jumper Pooja from taking aim at the women's national record of 1.92 metres at the 26th Asian Athletics Championships in Gumi. The mason's daughter from Bosti village in Haryana's Fatehabad district made a statement by attempting to rewrite Sahana Kumari's mark, dating back to 2012. Pooja had already pocketed the gold medal, only India's second in the women's high jump in the history of the competition, by clearing the bar at 1.89 metres. Last time an Indian woman high jumper won gold at the Asian Championships was in 2000, when a 26-year-old Bobby Aloysius cleared 1.83 metres. From humble beginnings — a bamboo pole as the bar and sacks filled with rice husk and hay as the landing mat — at her coach Balwan Patra's academy in Patra village, next to Bosti, Pooja challenged the best in Asia and won. The national record would have been a bonus. But 18-year-old Pooja had entered the record books by rewriting her own national Under-20 record, an improvement of four centimetres, en route to winning her first senior international medal. Since Aloysius's gold — she also won a silver in the next edition — the top of the podium place has been the preserve of the jumpers from Kyrgyzstan, China and Uzbekistan. Coach Balwan believes the national record would have fallen if not for the torn spike Pooja wore on her left foot during the final. Balwan said Pooja wears Nike spikes. But the left spike frayed and came apart during a practice session. 'Her regular Nike shoes split. She had an Adidas pair too, but she didn't get the right feel when she wore those spikes as she felt she could not control her jump. So she decided to wear the torn spikes because she was more comfortable in them. If her spikes were good, she could have equalled the national record,' Balwan told The Indian Express. Pooja was happy that her first medal at a senior international competition was a gold. 'My body was very well in sync and I would have cleared that 1.92m mark but missed it. Nevertheless, a personal best and gold medal is really good for me. In the last edition I did 1.75 (metres) but this time I improved, so this is a good medal for me at the age of 18,' Pooja said post the final. India's chief national coach Radhakrishnan Nair said he was pleasantly surprised that Pooja clinched the gold. The veteran coach said she has a bright future. 'Of course, I was expecting that she would do 1.85-plus but it was not assured with the gold medal. It was an excellent performance by her, comparing her age. She is developing every year. She can be a very good high jumper,' Nair said. Coach Balwan has given her the target of winning gold at next year's Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games. Even when she is travelling, thousands of kilometres from her village, Pooja is on the phone with Balwan multiple times a day. Post the press conference on Friday, Pooja rang up her long-time coach. Theirs is a partnership that goes back to when Pooja was into yogasana and gymnastics. Balwan didn't have a landing mat or any equipment to train high jumpers at his academy, named after his village — Patra Sports Academy, located at a school premises. 'We used rice husks and hay to fill sacks. Those sacks formed the landing mat,' Balwan said of the time when Pooja transitioned from yogasana and gymnastics to high jump. Pooja's father Hansraj Singh is a mason with a daily wage. He was open to the idea of enrolling his daughter at Balwan's academy. Pooja heard about the academy after she saw Balwan's trainees perform yogasana at a village function. 'Her father brought her to my academy. I trained her in gymnastics and also yoga. Back then there were no high jumpers training at the academy,' coach Balwan recalled. Balwan, a former 800 metres runner, however was impressed by Pooja's flexibility, explosive power and strength in her legs. He took a gamble and asked Pooja if she wanted to try high jump. 'Her first jump was about 90 centimetres. I knew immediately that she had a natural ability in the high jump.' Pooja spoke about the jugaad she and her coach resorted to in the early days. 'I picked up high jump because my coach was confident. When I started there was no proper mat, but I broke the Under-16 record. I have gone through a lot to reach here.' With Pooja's fortunes improving, the facilities at Patra's academy were also upgraded. A quality landing mat was gifted by former Asian Games and Commonwealth Games medal-winning discus thrower Seema Antil. 'After Pooja qualified for the Asian Games, Seema called me and asked what I needed. When she knew the mat was old, she said that she would get a new one. In less than a month, Seema ensured we had a new mat. Pooja trained on that mat for the Asian Games. We are grateful to Seema,' Balwan said. In Patra, there is a mini revolution in high jump following Pooja's success. 'Lot of kids want to be in the high jump. Pooja was the only high jumper, now there are 10 high jumpers in the academy — from Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. Pooja has inspired a lot of athletes to become high jumpers.'
India.com
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- India.com
This heroine of Sunil Shetty died during shooting in Pahalgam Jail, her role was given to Raveena Tandon, her name was…, film name is…
The film 'Mohra' changed Sunil Shetty's career, for which Raveena Tandon was not the first choice. She entered the film after the sudden death of the lead actress. She had a good friendship with Sunil Dutt. He often used to joke around with the crew during the shooting of the film 'Mohra'. The actor has given his reaction on his fearless behaviour and sudden death in Pahalgam jail. Sunil Shetty made his Bollywood debut with the film 'Balwan', in which he appeared opposite Divya Bharti. The filmmakers wanted to repeat the hit pair in 'Mohra' as well, but she passed away during the shooting. In a conversation with 'Radio Nasha', the veteran star recalled the last shooting with the actress, which took place in Pahalgam jail. Sunil Shetty recalled, 'We shot in Pahalgam jail, but the girl was fearless. There were real criminals in the jail, yet she was not scared at all. She was full of life and had a lot of fun. Somewhere we used to think about how we could harass Rajiv and Shabbir, our planning remained the same.' Sunil Shetty said that working with Divya was like a dream. The film 'Mohra' was directed by Rajiv Rai, which proved to be a big hit. It also featured Akshay Kumar, Naseeruddin Shah, and Raveena Tandon in lead roles. Raveena entered the film after Divya's death. Divya was the most expensive actress of her time. She was a part of many films, including Shola Aur Shabnam, Deewana. She died at the age of 19 after falling from the 5th floor of her apartment. She breathed her last in Cooper Hospital. The sudden demise of Divya Bharti had created a pall of gloom in Hindi cinema. It had a deep impact on Sunil Shetty. The veteran actor will next be seen in the film 'Kesari Veer'. Sunil Shetty's film 'Kesari Veer' will be released on May 23, with which Sooraj Pancholi is making a comeback on the big screen. Vivek Oberoi and Akanksha Sharma also have important roles in it.
Hindustan Times
04-05-2025
- Hindustan Times
3 detained in Rajasthan for 'selling' NEET paper for ₹40 lakh
Three men were detained by the Special Operations Group of Rajasthan Police for allegedly trying to dupe a NEET candidate of ₹40 lakh by promising him the question paper, an officer on Sunday said. The accused were identified as Balwan, 27, Mukesh Meena, 40, and Hardas, 38, according to police. On Friday, the three took the student and his family members to Gurugram and asked for the money, at which point the student's family asked them to show the paper. When they refused, they contacted the SOG, which apprehended the three on Saturday. The National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test, or NEET-UG, is underway today to qualify candidates for admissions in medical colleges across India.
The Hindu
04-05-2025
- The Hindu
Three detained in Rajasthan for 'selling' NEET paper for ₹40 lakh
Three men were detained by the Special Operations Group of Rajasthan Police for allegedly trying to dupe a NEET candidate of ₹40 lakh by promising him the question paper, an officer said on Sunday (May 4, 2025). The accused were identified as Balwan, 27, Mukesh Meena, 40, and Hardas, 38, according to police. On Friday, the three took the student and his family members to Gurugram and asked for the money, at which point the student's family asked them to show the paper. When they refused, they contacted the SOG, which apprehended the three on Saturday. The National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test, or NEET-UG, is underway today to qualify candidates for admissions in medical colleges across India.
