At 4.30 a.m., Jagdish Gulia and his eight-year-old daughter Tannu were glued to television, watching Indian women wrestle at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Tannu, his eight-year-old daughter, and Jagdish Gulia were transfixed to the television at 4:30 in the morning, watching Indian women wrestlers compete in the Rio Olympics 2016. Jagdish and Tannu embraced in celebration as Sakshi Malik flipped the bout on its head in the final seconds to win bronze. Tannu was going to be a grappler, that’s when Haryana school bus driver Jagdish made his decision. However, Tannu was even more thrilled about the travel opportunities that would come with being an athlete.
When she took home the bronze in the 65kg weight division at the Rajarathinam stadium here on Tuesday, she moved one step closer to realizing her ambition.
“Gold would have made my father happy, but it’s all right. This time, unlike the previous edition, when I was knocked out in the second round and came back empty-handed, I have something to show my father,” Tannu declared as she walked around the arena flaunting her medal.
Her father normally accompanies her to most contests, but this time around his school did not approve of his leave, instead she was joined by her uncle Narendra and her younger cousin Sakshi, who was not successful in winning a medal.
Tannu has earned four medals thus far, including this bronze one. She won bronze in the Under-17 Cadet Ranking Series in 2022, the Under-19 School Games in 2023, and the Under-14 School National Games in 2019.
“You will witness me win the gold in the next Khelo India Youth Games. I promise to work diligently and thoroughly going forward. I’m excited enough about the chance and medal I received in the Khelo India Youth Games. Bigger and better is what I feel I deserve,” Tannu continued.
She claimed that in spite of his meager income, her father had taken every precaution to ensure the wrestler’s nutrition. “To keep me strong, he feeds me everything.” To ensure there is always a plenty of milk and ghee, my uncle even purchased a buffalo,” she disclosed.
