Hurdles exponent Jyothi Yarraji, grappling with upheavals

Jyothi Yarraji is one of the emerging superstars of Indian athletics given her consistent performances in international meets during the last couple of yearsShe won the 100m hurdles gold the first Indian woman to do so and 200m silver in the Asia Athletics Championship in Bangkok recently But this sterling show came against all odds Her father Surya Narayana who is a security guard was hospitalised for chest congestion and there was heavy rain on the day of the 100m hurdles eventldquoIt was raining very heavily during my main event 100m hurdles Technically it was a difficult race I had done 1298s in the heats while I had my best timing of 1282 recently I could have had a better timing if there was no rain Nevertheless it is a dream come true to win gold in the Asian Championship In fact the rain also made me sick for the 200m the next day But I was determined to win a medal and I could achieve a silver It is my first big international medal after my win at the Asian Indoor meet rsquorsquo said the 23yearold Visakhapatnam athleteJyothi was also worried for her father who is in the hospital for the last 10 days ldquoIt was a difficult time Nothing has changed for me financially My father continues to work as a security guard and we are struggling to make ends meet Recently I got an offer from the Railways and hopefully it job will help my familyrsquorsquo said Jyothi who was back in the National camp in Cuttack on her return from BangkokSeptemberrsquos Asian Games in China is her priority now ldquoIrsquom confident of a good show Irsquom in good rhythm Irsquom aware there will be a lot of competition in the Asian Games particularly from the Chinese But Irsquom not worried as the track will be the same for allrdquo she saidAlso Read BFI has some explaining to doJyothi who was induced to athletics by her PE teacher Reddy at Port High School in Vizag and ran her first race when she was in Class 10 ldquoSomehow Reddy sir saw some talent in me and asked me to take to athletics I accepted the challenge though my parents never knew what sports was and its benefits They were naiumlve and I promised that I would bring results within one year Im happy to fulfil my promisersquorsquoSelected for the Sports Hostel she moved to Hyderabad to train under Nagapuri Ramesh at Gachibowli Stadium in 2016 Jyothi began to make a mark ldquoTill I joined Sports Hostel I never wore spike shoes It was a different challenge Ramesh sir showed all the patience in the training sessions I could see improvement in my timings and within one year I could win a gold in the Youth Nationals in Keralardquo she saidCoach Ramesh is all praise for Jyothi ldquoShe is a hard working athlete Her hardships have not come in her way She is an epitome of energyrsquorsquoJyothi has since moved to the National camp and trains under British coach James Hillier ldquoHe has made me a confident athlete It is very difficult to explain how he has changed my style or my run Irsquom more mentally strong now Irsquom able to improve my timings in every meetrdquo Jyothi remarkedWith the Paris Olympics scheduled to be held next year Jyothi is confident of qualifying for the 2024 Games ldquoI had qualified for the World Championships However I need that European exposure so that I can run in a strong competition to improve my timing I desperately need hurdles for my training sessions I canrsquot afford to purchase them as each hurdle costs Rs 1500 and they may break at times I need a good number of form hurdles and hopefully some good Samaritan will come forward to help in this aspect In fact my fatherrsquos health is also a bit of concern Irsquom keeping my fingers crossedrdquo she signed off