Latest news with #SepakTakraw
India Gazette
22-05-2025
- Sport
- India Gazette
Khelo India Beach Games 2025: Jimi Okram completes 25 years, continues to pioneer Manipur's Sepak Takraw journey
Diu (Daman and Diu) [India], May 22 (ANI): It was year 2000 when a young Jimi Devi Okram stood beside a dusty field in West Imphal's Singjamei district, watching her seniors practice a curious sport with acrobatic kicks and flying reflexes, according to a release from SAI media. The National Games had just been held in Manipur in 1999. Two and a half decades later, Jimi, 38, stands tall as one of the senior-most players in Sepak Takraw at the inaugural Khelo India Beach Games in Diu. The Manipuri athlete was raised by a widowed mother and later supported by an equally determined elder sister. 'My mother always told me, 'Go play if it makes you happy.'' That early encouragement became her purpose. Jimi lost her mother, too, but never her resolve. 'My mom always used to support me. I play even now with the aim to make her name shine always. She will always be an angel beneath my wings,' Jimi told SAI Media. 'My elder sister, who works in a beauty parlour in Manipur, has filled my mom's position in my life. She has motivated me to go forward with my sports journey, and from the money we both earn, she gives me the major chunk to help me prolong my sports career. Before coming to the Khelo India Beach Games too, my elder sister helped me a lot in various ways and has never made feel the absence of my parents,' added Jimi, who has competed in the 2010 and 2014 Asian Games, added. From her early days at the Youth Amateur Welfare Association (YAWA) club in Singjamei to earning selection for the sub-junior nationals within a year of starting, Jimi rose through the ranks rapidly. Her stunning performances nationally and internationally helped her secure a job with the Manipur Police Department. The change Jimi has witnessed in her 25 years of sports career is staggering. 'When I started, we had no infrastructure. Today, Manipur has a Khelo India Centre in Heingang, East Imphal, which runs full-time morning and evening sessions and unearths young grassroots talents every day. Even seniors help out because they know it's about lifting the next generation,' she said. In the recently-concluded Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG) 2025 in Bihar, athletes training at the Khelo India Centre (KIC) for Sepak Takraw in Imphal clinched four golds, one silver, and one bronze, adding to Manipur's tally of medals as they stood ninth with 30 medals, including 11 gold. Jimi herself trains at the KIC, under Past Champion Athlete (PCA) or chief coach Wahengbam Pramodini Chanu. 'There are a lot of players in Manipur nowadays interested in Sepak Takraw, be it the mini-level, sub junior or junior levels, there are a lot of kids. The KIC in East Imphal has also done wonders. A lot of development is happening in the sport,' Jimi mentioned. Veteran Manipuri Sepak Takraw coach Surjit Singh Waikom has been an integral figure behind this transformation. He was a part of the first-ever three-member India team to take part in Sepak Takraw at the Asian Games. 'The Sports Authority of India (SAI) centre in Imphal has produced a lot of athletes in Sepak Takraw. Most of the SSB players from Manipur have come out from the SAI ranks. The Khelo India centre here, as well as the Manipur Government, has done immense to develop the sport,' said the 48-year-old to SAI Media. Seeing his juniors compete at the Khelo India Beach Games will be a lasting experience, according to him. 'We don't have sand courts in Manipur for beach-style play, so we have always trained on local mud grounds. With more courts and structured training coming in, they'll be ready for international stages,' Singh added. Jimi, who's taking part in the Trio Team Girls, Regu Girls and Trio Girls events, wants to make the KIBG experience not only memorable for herself but for her entire state. 'Infrastructure facilities have improved rapidly from my time, and the kids also have a renewed interest in the sport. Our federation has also done a lot for our game. Not just Manipur, in every state of India, the game of Sepak Takraw has levelled up,' the 38-year-old told SAI Media. As for her own firm resolve of holding the fort as the senior-most competitor, Jimi is far from done. 'Age is just a number. I will continue to support these kids, be it as a coach or mentor. This game has given me everything. Now it's my turn to give back. I may be racing towards retirement age, but the kids today will get a lot of benefit going forward through Khelo India games like these. Manipur's name will continue to shine in Sepak Takraw,' Jimi added with pride. (ANI)
The Hindu
21-05-2025
- Sport
- The Hindu
Khelo India Beach Games: After impressing at Asiad, Khushbu, Chaoba hope for Sepak Takraw's brighter future
'Inlog ka serve toh badhiyan hai! (The serves of these women are really nice). ' A group of onlookers commended the way a women's Sepak Takraw team was serving as compared to a men's team – both matches taking place on adjacent courts at the Khelo India Beach Games on Tuesday – before walking along the pathway by Ghoghla beach in Diu. Amidst all the women Sepak Takraw players at the Games, two athletes had the added distinction of winning bronze at the Asian Games 2022: Oinam Chaoba Devi and Khushbu. 'The beach makes it difficult to have a footing. Running becomes hard as the foot keeps going into the sand [laughs],' Chaoba told Sportstar shortly after one of her matches. 'There's a lot of hard work that goes into playing on the beach. Receiving the ball becomes uncomfortable,' Khushbu chimed in later in the evening. She also added how they can easily fight on the usual indoor and outdoor courts, ones they are used to, which she showed in China's Hangzhou in 2023 along with Chaoba and others. Life before and after Asian Games history Chaoba and Khushbu were members of the Regu team that won a historic bronze at the 2022 Asian Games – a first medal for the Indian women in the sport at the Asiad. The lives of both of them changed after winning the medal. ''What will she get by playing; for how long will she play?' were what people used to tell me. In 2007, I started training in the SAI (Sports Authority of India) centre in Manipur. We have a lot of facilities there. A lot has changed since. The Hangzhou Games were my third Asiad, and the first where I won a medal. Now, the people of my village speak a different language, encouraging me and telling me to continue playing. They surprise me at my home with garlands as well,' Chaoba, who began playing the sport in 2004, said. Oinam Chaoba Devi in action during a Sepak takraw match at the Khelo India Beach Games 2025 at Ghoghla Beach. | Photo Credit: Shashi Shekhar Kashyap/ The Hindu In Khushbu's case, the medal meant more people from her home State in Uttar Pradesh (UP) were made aware of the sport called Sepak Takraw. 'After I won the medal, people in UP got to know what the sport is. Very few people know about it. Many children don't know about it. I was called to different places for interviews as well.' However, this moment in India's Asian Games history wouldn't have happened if both of these players had stuck to their first sport of choice. ALSO READ: Stars align on Diu's shores for inaugural Khelo India Beach Games opening ceremony Hailing from a place far from Manipur's capital, Chaoba was interested in athletics. But people from her village didn't partake. Rather, they couldn't. The closest place with the facilities for athletics was Khuman Lampak in Imphal, which was very far from her home. A club located 15 minutes from her home is where she watched her seniors play the game. Proximity thus played a key role in Chaoba's tryst with Sepak Takraw. For school-going Khushbu, it was about being different. 'I initially thought of trying out hockey. But then I switched to this. At first, I couldn't grasp anything, but I stuck with my decision. I wanted to play a unique sport. It has given me a lot, mere ragg ragg mai bas gaya hai (It has become a part of me). Even when I tried to leave it, I couldn't.' A secure present, a hope for the future Having been around for more than two decades, Chaoba has seen the ups and downs of Sepak Takraw in India. The SuperSeries tournament in 2013 in New Delhi was the first international Sepak Takraw event in India in which Chaoba took part. This year's World Cup in Bihar was her second such tournament, where she even won two medals. 'In Bihar, the arrangement was quite nice. I had lots of fun there.' A ligament tear – a result of overexertion which began much before the Asian Games – didn't allow Khushbu to be a part of the home World Cup. Sepak Takraw is one of the several disciplines being played at the Khelo India Beach Games in Dui. | Photo Credit: Shashi Shekhar Kashyap/ The Hindu Nevertheless, the sport has helped them sort out their lives. After becoming an athlete under SAI, Chaoba clinched a gold medal at the 2011 National Games, which helped her get a job at the sports department of Manipur. This has provided her with a sense of security. Khushbu, now 29, also has a job at the paramilitary force because of the sport. Khushbu lauded the Sepak Takraw Federation of India's efforts to popularise the sport and hoped these would soon translate into it becoming a part of the Olympics. While she thought that the Indian women's team had massively improved in quality since the Asian Games bronze, Chaoba felt that more could be done to guide the upcoming generations. 'There's a need to create an academy from which players for the national teams can be developed. We have camps in Thailand, and we see their academies which are really good. We should have longer camps where players from all parts of the country, juniors or otherwise, come together to train for international tournaments.'
Barnama
19-05-2025
- Sport
- Barnama
I Played Through Injury As I Didn't Want To Let Teammates Down
KUALA LUMPUR, May 19 (Bernama) -- National apit kanan (killer) Mohamad Azlan Alias was so determined to help the team beat Thailand in the 2025 Sepak Takraw Asian Cup team regu final last night that he even endured the agony of playing with a sprained hand. Alas, his sacrifice came to nought as Thailand beat Malaysia 2-0. Though his injury affected their rhythm in the first set, Azlan said he decided to play on despite the pain from the injury as he did not want to let his teammates down. bootstrap slideshow "As long as I'm able, and my hand is not fractured, I will soldier on. Anyway, I couldn't bear watching my teammates play without me, so I just endured the pain. "I wanted to be replaced but, at the same time, I also knew I could play on. However, luck was not on our side and we lost,' he told reporters after the final last night. With Malaysia trailing 6-9 in the first set, Azlan sprained his hand when he mistimed his landing. That clearly affected the Malaysian regu's rhythm as Azlan, together with tekong Mohammad Syahir Mohd (server) Rosdi and apit kiri Amirul Zazwan Azmi (feeder) lost the first set 11-15. Although they bounced back to take the second set 15-12, the Malaysian challenge, however, ended when they went down fighting 15-17 in the decider. Azlan said he is awaiting a detailed checkup to assess the extent of his injury, adding that he is proud of the fighting spirit shown by his teammates despite their failure to win the team regu title.
The Sun
19-05-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
I played through injury as I didn't want to let teammates down
KUALA LUMPUR: National apit kanan (killer) Mohamad Azlan Alias was so determined to help the team beat Thailand in the 2025 Sepak Takraw Asian Cup team regu final last night that he even endured the agony of playing with a sprained hand. Alas, his sacrifice came to nought as Thailand beat Malaysia 2-0. Though his injury affected their rhythm in the first set, Azlan said he decided to play on despite the pain from the injury as he did not want to let his teammates down. 'As long as I'm able, and my hand is not fractured, I will soldier on. Anyway, I couldn't bear watching my teammates play without me, so I just endured the pain. 'I wanted to be replaced but, at the same time, I also knew I could play on. However, luck was not on our side and we lost,' he told reporters after the final last night. With Malaysia trailing 6-9 in the first set, Azlan sprained his hand when he mistimed his landing. That clearly affected the Malaysian regu's rhythm as Azlan, together with tekong Mohammad Syahir Mohd (server) Rosdi and apit kiri Amirul Zazwan Azmi (feeder) lost the first set 11-15. Although they bounced back to take the second set 15-12, the Malaysian challenge, however, ended when they went down fighting 15-17 in the decider. Azlan said he is awaiting a detailed checkup to assess the extent of his injury, adding that he is proud of the fighting spirit shown by his teammates despite their failure to win the team regu title.
The Sun
19-05-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
Injured Azlan battles on as Malaysia fall to Thailand
KUALA LUMPUR: National apit kanan (killer) Mohamad Azlan Alias was so determined to help the team beat Thailand in the 2025 Sepak Takraw Asian Cup team regu final last night that he even endured the agony of playing with a sprained hand. Alas, his sacrifice came to nought as Thailand beat Malaysia 2-0. Though his injury affected their rhythm in the first set, Azlan said he decided to play on despite the pain from the injury as he did not want to let his teammates down. 'As long as I'm able, and my hand is not fractured, I will soldier on. Anyway, I couldn't bear watching my teammates play without me, so I just endured the pain. 'I wanted to be replaced but, at the same time, I also knew I could play on. However, luck was not on our side and we lost,' he told reporters after the final last night. With Malaysia trailing 6-9 in the first set, Azlan sprained his hand when he mistimed his landing. That clearly affected the Malaysian regu's rhythm as Azlan, together with tekong Mohammad Syahir Mohd (server) Rosdi and apit kiri Amirul Zazwan Azmi (feeder) lost the first set 11-15. Although they bounced back to take the second set 15-12, the Malaysian challenge, however, ended when they went down fighting 15-17 in the decider. Azlan said he is awaiting a detailed checkup to assess the extent of his injury, adding that he is proud of the fighting spirit shown by his teammates despite their failure to win the team regu title.
