Nagoya, Sep 26 — When Baranica Elangovan took up pole vault, people in her village questioned whether the sport was worth the risk and even told her parents that “no one will marry her” if she got injured. Years later, the 24-year-old Indian athlete stood on the Asian Games podium in Nagoya, winning a bronze medal in the women’s pole vault after clearing 4.20m.
Elangovan, who hails from a village and took up pole vaulting despite suffering an ACL injury in 2019, said the medal was a culmination of her parents’ faith, her coach’s belief and the support she received from the Athletics Federation of India (AFI).
“I come from a village. When I started, I underwent ACL surgery after an injury while vaulting in 2019. At that time, everyone was telling my parents, “Why let a girl take part in Pole Vault? This event is quite risky. If something happens to her, no one will marry her.” They were talking behind our backs. But my mum and dad believed in me. They spoke clearly with the coach, and my coach believed in my talent. He told them, “She’ll be able to do more than you think. She’ll definitely shine in sport.” They believed him, and I want to thank them too, because they didn’t listen to others; they believed in me," Elangovan told IANS after her bronze-medal finish.
The significance of the result was heightened by how unexpectedly Elangovan discovered she had secured a medal. With another athlete from Kazakhstan also tied for third, she initially did not realise that her performance was enough for the podium.
“I didn’t believe I’d won the medal. My colleague came up and said, “You were at the bronze, you won it.” There was another athlete sharing the bronze, the Kazakhstan athlete. My colleague told me that I was tied at third for the Bronze medal. Only after that did I find out. I was aiming for a PB (Personal Best), but I actually got the medal.”
Elangovan also credited the AFI’s efforts in transporting her pole and the preparatory arrangements in Japan for helping her settle into the conditions before the competition.
“This time, our Athletics Federation of India tried every possible way with every airline to take our poles, and they made it really possible. I also want to thank the Athletics Federation of India. It was only because of them that I could win this medal. There was a preparatory camp at Sugupa University one week before the Asian Games, which helped me adapt to the environment, timings, food and recovery. They sorted everything out for us, and it was really nice.”
For Elangovan, the Asian Games bronze ultimately belonged to the person who stood by her throughout the journey.
“I’m dedicating this to my coach, Milber Bertrand Russell.”