New Delhi: Star Indian gymnast Dipa Karmakar, on Monday regretted missing out on the Commonwealth Games later this year but pledged to win a medal at the Asian Games (August 18-September 2)
Karmakar was ruled out of the Commonwealth Games scheduled to be held in Gold Coast, Australia from April 4-15 with a knee injury from last year. She also had an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) surgery in April last year.
“I am very sad that I am not going for the Commonwealth Games. Last time in the 2014 CWG in Glasgow, I won a bronze medal. If this injury did not happen, I would have taken part in Gold Coast also. Our (gymnastic team) performance would have been better this time,” said Karmakar, on the sidelines of an Indian Olympics Association (IOA) sponsorship event.
The 24-year-old, who became the first female gymnast to participate in the Olympics when she secured a fourth-place finish in the women’s vault event in Rio two years ago, said that she has completed her rehabilitation and has begun training.
“But injury happens in a sportsperson’s life and we have to face it. My rehabilitation is over and I have started training for the Asian Games,” added Karmakar.
The Tripura girl also said that she was putting her focus on all four events-vaults, uneven bars, balance beam and floor.
“Once a gymnast learns something (Produnova), that will remain forever. But I am trying to learn other things also,” she added.
When asked if she felt any discomfort during training after a long gap, she said, “Everything is going on well now. With the love of the people of this country, I hope to get medals in the international events. I don’t want to finish fourth. My focus is on the Asian Games.”
The 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow witnessed Karmakar make history when her bronze medal in the competition became the first ever, for an Indian woman gymnast in a mega-event. She had also won a bronze medal in the 2015 Asian Championships.
Another gymnast-Aruna Budda Reddy also made history few days back in Melbourne when she became the first Indian to win an individual medal at the Gymnastics World Cup where she clinched a bronze in the women’s vault event.
Karmakar, who happens to be Aruna’s room partner said that she is proud of her achievement.
“Since 2011 whenever Aruna was in the national camp with (Bisweshwar) Nandi sir and from 2014 to 2017 we train together and we were room partners. She was very close to me. Recently, she went for foreign training for one month. But the two vaults she did there in Melbourne, she had learnt it in India under Nandi sir.
“I feel very proud that my training and room partner won a bronze in a Gymnastics World Cup. She kept on telling me that she was working hard but not getting any result. I kept on telling her that one day or the other she will get the medal. I hope she wins a gold in Gold Coast,” Karmakar said.