Sport - Wrestling

Sushil given a royal welcome

NEW DELHI: It was a boisterous and eventful home coming for Sushil Kumar; cars, bikes, trucks, and finally an elephant forming the procession.

The Olympic bronze medallist wrestler was hardly allowed to walk, and was carried on the shoulders of people he knew and many he did not. He did not mind, neither did they. It was a festive atmosphere at Bapraula, which stayed awake the night and stood fresh to a man as the hero heralded the dawn.

Amid ceaseless beating of drums and dancing of fans, police escorted Sushil and his guru Satpal to a jeep decorated with marigold flowers.

The rally, led by a dancing troupes and a delirious bunch of youth bursting fire crackers, resulted in a severe traffic jam on roads leading to the airport. “We do not know where to go, we absolutely do not have any idea, we will just follow instructions,” a young man, who drove the jeep carrying Sushil, said.

After a strenuous and rapturous two-hour journey, the cavalcade finally reached Bapraula, near Najafgarh.

“We have danced throughout the night and there is no scope for any food or sleep. But we still feel fresh,” said Jai Singh, Sushil’s uncle.

With the rising sun, the procession gathered grandeur as Sushil, amidst fanfare, was taken to his family’s traditional spiritual spot – Dadadev temple – where he offered prayers. Both the grappler and his mentor Satpal were honoured with tying of turbans after performing the puja.

They were later taken in procession on elephant back through the streets.

“My dream has come true at last. What I could not achieve in my life, my ward has been able to achieve. I am thankful to the media that it is giving so much attention to wrestling,” an emotion-drenched Satpal said.

He said that he had promised the late Guru Hanuman that one day he or his trainee would bring an Olympic medal for India.

As Sushil went around the village on the elephant, he acknowledged each and every greeting from the villagers with folded hands.

Meanwhile, his sister Sita could not wait for her turn to share the moment of joy with the wrestler. “I have prepared ‘kheer’ for him, he loves it so much,” she said.

Also desperate to get closer to the new hero of the village were Sushil’s grandmother and his parents, Diwan Singh and Kamla Devi, who were tired of answering countless questions from the media.

Bapraula finally witnessed the ebb in ecstasy as Sushil left for the Chhattarsal Stadium, his training base and residential quarters where he mastered the skills that eventually fetched a medal for the country.

© Copyright 2000 - 2009 The Hindu