Given the unending list of injuries to Commander Atool Sinha, he should rather be on bed than in his sailing boat
Given the unending list of injuries to Commander Atool Sinha, he should rather be on bed than in his sailing boat.
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| Asian Games silver medallist sailor Commander Atool Sinha |
The 41-year-old sailor from Pune has suffered two slip discs, a ligament tear on the left knee, a tennis elbow injury on one arm and bursitis (a common cause of swelling and inflammation around the elbow joint) on the other ufffd And all this before his silver medal-winning feat at last month's Guangzhou Asian Games.
Sinha clinched silver at the quadrennial event along with teammates Farokh Tarapore, Balraj Yadav, Shekar Yadav and Trunal Helegaonkar as part of India's five-man match racing team.
They were felicitated at the Royal Bombay Yacht Club in Colaba yesterday.
The extent of Sinha's injuries have led to his teammates calling him injury ki dukaan. "You name the injury and he has it. He is broken from top to bottom," said Balraj Yadav. Sinha, who was the mainsheet trimmer in the team, spoke off how he defied all odds to take part in the Asiad. "I competed in the Asian Games wearing a metal cap fitted with rods on my leg and elbow, and a lower-back support belt."
The Naval officer took a break from the sport in 1994 to answer the call of duty and returned to sailing in 2008 ufffd after 14 years.
The comeback wasn't easy. "I had to shed 14 kgs to get back to training. Then in 2000, I was bed-ridden for a few months due to back problem. More than the physical part, it was a huge mental challenge to make the comeback. I thank my family and colleagues who helped me compete again."
Commander Sinha has no plans to hang up his boots as yet.u00a0 "I always wanted to win an Asian Games medal.
Andu00a0 now that I've done it, I want to win more. It is just the beginning," he signed off.
