Her shooting hand bruised by repeated pistol recoils during unrelenting training, Manu Bhaker will take a well deserved three month break. But it will be no vacation. The double Olympic medallist will continue her other routines including yoga and waking up at 6 am — which she hates. And oh yes. She also plans to catch up on her hobbies — horse riding, skating, Bharatnatyam and violin practice to name a few. The 22-year-old, who won bronze medals in the 10m air pistol and 10m air pistol mixed team (partnering Sarabjot Singh), was at PTI headquarters on Friday along with her coach and shooting great Jaspal Rana for a freewheeling interaction with its editors.
Proudly flaunting her medals, the vivacious youngster from Haryana’s Jhajjar spoke about her Paris preparations, how the Tokyo setback was nothing more than a distant memory now, and also her plans to indulge in everything that she put on hold for her Olympic dreams.
“Now, I have some time off and I can probably do that (martial arts) again,” said Bhaker, a karate kid in her teens before a change of heart led her to shooting.
“I was not able to get that kind of time to invest myself into that (martial arts). Finally, I can take time off for my hobbies, and I have many, many hobbies. Horse riding… personally, I love horse riding, skating, I can still manage on the roads, then fitness, I really enjoy working out.
“Then, I have dance (as a hobby) also , I am learning Bharatnatyam. I love the dance forms. I was training in France, I wasn’t able to get time, not able to cope up with the (Bharatnatyam) classes,” said Bhaker, whose trainer is from Tamil Nadu.
“She takes my classes personally and then I have violin also,” she added.
As she revealed her bucket list for the “holiday”, Rana had a faint smile on his face and he also made it a point to shake his head in disapproval at the very mention of horse riding.
“…then she has to come back in one piece,” Rana said, drawing a laugh from Bhaker.
“Skating and horse riding are something she should not be doing and she’ll be responsible for whatever happens. Who rides a horse thinking that they will fall?” he wondered aloud.
A bemused Bhaker was not going to back down easily, their banter also being a reflection of the easy equation between one of the most talked about coach-player combinations in Indian sports right now.
“I have been learning horse riding for sometime now,” she retorted immediately, asserting that she would be responsible if anything goes haywire.
“I was waiting that after the Olympic, I will do horse riding. And so many other things I want to do like skydiving, scuba diving. I’ve waited for so long,” she said, inviting another shake of the head from Rana.
On his part, Rana was clear that the break was to ensure that the youngster’s shooting hand gets back to full fitness.
“This (pointing to her injured hand) is the reason we are making her rest for three months. Because this (injury) has been for the last eight months and it has not healed till now,” Rana said.
“So rest is mandatory for the hand, and we had decided much before the World Cup (Final was awarded to New Delhi)… Our decision to stop for three months was before that,” he added.
“It will not be very easy but this break is required. It’s not something we’ll enjoy. It’s only the shooting part which will not be there but her mental (training) waking up in the morning for yoga, everything will be as per what we were doing. Because that’s the lifestyle she has to follow.” Bhaker will not compete in the the season-ending prestigious ISSF World Cup Final for elite shooters from across the world in October in Delhi, and also likely skip the national championships and the camps that will follow to tend to her injured hand.
Bhaker had done a rendition of the national anthem on a violin, gifted to her by her brother, and a video of it went viral after her Paris performance.
“Yes, I was able to manage something on the violin, but I’m only on the basics,” said the champion shooter.
“Indian classical is my preference, but I’m only like beginning to learn it, so I’m not at the advanced level. I’m just one month into it… just the basics.”
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