As a teenager, Nyeman Wangsu was fascinated watching ladies skilfully brandishing swords at a sports activities academy in Itanagar. Their gliding actions and acrobatics with a weapon in hand have been one thing that she had by no means seen earlier than. Nyeman, then barely 11, enquired in regards to the sport. She got here to know they have been practitioners of Wushu – a Chinese martial artwork that can also be a sports activities self-discipline.

She didn’t waste time selecting her subject from the array of sports activities within the academy. Nine years on, Nyeman has established herself as certainly one of India’s most interesting exponents in Taolu — one of many two disciplines in Wushu — and is ready to compete on the Asian Games in September.

Before her first main multi-sporting occasion, the 20-year-old Nyeman was trying ahead to a visit to Chengdu, China for the World University Games however she was among the many three Indian athletes from Arunachal Pradesh (Onilu Tega and Mepung Lamgu have been the others) who acquired stapled visas from China. The whole Indian Wushu workforce withdrew in protest. China doesn’t recognise Arunachal as an Indian territory and has been issuing stapled visas to its residents.

Nyeman, although disillusioned, will not be heartbroken. “You feel sad because we were expecting to go there and get some competition before the Asian Games. The entire team did not go and we are there to support each other. We are motivated to do well at the Asian Games,” mentioned nationwide champion Nyeman from her coaching camp in Srinagar.

Last yr she received two medals, together with a gold on the International Moscow Wushu Championships in Daoshu, the place individuals use swords of their routine.

The gamers have returned to their nationwide camps to coach for the Asian Games the place they are going to be eyeing a historic first-ever gold medal from the game for India. There is a cause for his or her self-belief. In the previous few years, India has taken spectacular strides within the sport on the world stage.

“We started winning medals at the World and Asian level from 2011 but our athletes were still winning silver and bronze medals. Now in the last two World Championships, India has won gold medals and that has lifted everyone’s morale. The juniors are also making a mark,” says India’s nationwide coach Kuldeep Handoo.

That breakthrough was achieved by Pooja Kadian on the 2017 World Championships, profitable the title within the 75kg girls’s Sanda occasion. In 2019, two Indians Praveen Kumar (48kg) and Poonam Khatri (75kg) returned with gold medals in Sanda. India got here again from Shanghai with a complete of 4 medals.

There are two disciplines in Wushu and India’s energy is Sanda, an unarmed fight sport that developed from conventional Wushu strategies, primarily making use of punching, kicking, throwing, wrestling and defensive strategies. In Tolou, athletes carry out completely different routines both barehanded or with weapons (choreographed duel/sparring routines and group), highlighting their athletic strengths. Judges consider completely different elements of a efficiency, on high quality of actions, and diploma of problem.

The sport has been a part of the Asian Games since 1990 and China is on the forefront in its battle for inclusion as an Olympic sport. It will probably be making its first look on an Olympic competitors programme on the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympics. In reality, it got here shut to creating the minimize for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

“The sport is spreading fast in India and considering that it can be an Olympic sport in the future, we are on the right track,” mentioned Handoo, who can also be the primary Dronacharya Awardee from the game. “Earlier it was restricted to the North East but now kids are coming from various parts of North India – Haryana, Rajasthan, and Jammu and Kashmir where wushu is increasingly becoming popular among kids,” he mentioned.

Even within the northeast, it was not too well-known as a sporting self-discipline, mentioned Onilu Tega, who competes in Sanda.

“I started in 2013 but then people used to ask me which sport is this. In the last few years, things have changed as our seniors have won international medals, and now we are always highlighted in local media. So, people talk about us. It is growing in popularity,” mentioned the Nationals Games gold medallist.

She can also be a part of a powerful 13-member squad for the Asian Games. So far, India has received one silver and 6 bronze, since beginning to take part within the occasion in 2006.

One participant who will probably be aiming to interrupt the gold-medal jinx is Manipur’s Naorem Roshibina Devi who received bronze (Sanda, 60kg) on the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta.

“Winning a medal for the country was the proudest moment for me. It was a memorable experience. But this time I want to return with a gold medal. We have got good training at the national camp and the team bonding is great. We are prepared to come back with the best show at the Asian Games,” she mentioned.