New Delhi: Bhagwani Devi Dagar, 94, who returned with a medal haul from the World Masters Athletics Championships in Tampere, Finland, trains light and as for diet, banks on good old ghar ka khana which includes milk, chapatis and pulses.
Dagar began her training only around six months ago under the guidance of her grandson, 38-year-old Vikas, a para athlete. After he handed her the shot put wondering what she would make of it, “my grandmother said she wanted to throw the iron ball and I realised she had an innate interest”, said Vikas. “I took her to Kakrola Stadium, thinking let’s see how much she can do.”
There was no looking back for the nonagenarian. Four months after stepping on the stadium turf and taking up sprints, shot put and discus, Dagar won three gold medals in the Delhi state masters championships on April 1-2 and three more in the national masters championships on April 26-May 2. She had come a long way from her indulgence in kabaddi as a child in her paternal village of Khedka, in Haryana.
The people who crowded to congratulate Dagar on her return to Delhi on Tuesday perhaps don’t realise how many challenges she has overcome to become a world champion. When she was 29 years old and pregnant, she lost her husband. Her daughter died at the age of 11 and in 2007, Dagar underwent a bypass surgery.
Unlike other athletics who spend hours daily in rigorous training, the elder star practises for an hour two-three days a week. “At her age, we think warm-up exercises and sessions on techniques are adequate,” said Vikas, a Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna awardee. “We don’t do rigorous training because my grandmother could suffer injuries due to her age.”
Dagar, of course, makes it a point to remain fit and healthy. Starting her day at 6am, every day, she walks 2km each morning and evening. “Our house is three-storied and I have to use the stairs to reach the terrace to water the plants,” said Dagar. She eats only home-cooked food and says, “I survive on desi khana and love milk, pulses, chapatis, vegetables and fruits.”
The high-spirited woman wants to next win gold in the World Masters Athletics Indoor Championship to be held in Poland in March next year. She has an impish nature and when asked why she did not smile for photographers, she quipped that she had no teeth. Then, in grandmotherly fashion, she added, “I want today’s children to run and jump a lot.” Amen!
Dagar began her training only around six months ago under the guidance of her grandson, 38-year-old Vikas, a para athlete. After he handed her the shot put wondering what she would make of it, “my grandmother said she wanted to throw the iron ball and I realised she had an innate interest”, said Vikas. “I took her to Kakrola Stadium, thinking let’s see how much she can do.”
There was no looking back for the nonagenarian. Four months after stepping on the stadium turf and taking up sprints, shot put and discus, Dagar won three gold medals in the Delhi state masters championships on April 1-2 and three more in the national masters championships on April 26-May 2. She had come a long way from her indulgence in kabaddi as a child in her paternal village of Khedka, in Haryana.
The people who crowded to congratulate Dagar on her return to Delhi on Tuesday perhaps don’t realise how many challenges she has overcome to become a world champion. When she was 29 years old and pregnant, she lost her husband. Her daughter died at the age of 11 and in 2007, Dagar underwent a bypass surgery.
Unlike other athletics who spend hours daily in rigorous training, the elder star practises for an hour two-three days a week. “At her age, we think warm-up exercises and sessions on techniques are adequate,” said Vikas, a Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna awardee. “We don’t do rigorous training because my grandmother could suffer injuries due to her age.”
Dagar, of course, makes it a point to remain fit and healthy. Starting her day at 6am, every day, she walks 2km each morning and evening. “Our house is three-storied and I have to use the stairs to reach the terrace to water the plants,” said Dagar. She eats only home-cooked food and says, “I survive on desi khana and love milk, pulses, chapatis, vegetables and fruits.”
The high-spirited woman wants to next win gold in the World Masters Athletics Indoor Championship to be held in Poland in March next year. She has an impish nature and when asked why she did not smile for photographers, she quipped that she had no teeth. Then, in grandmotherly fashion, she added, “I want today’s children to run and jump a lot.” Amen!
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