Deepa Karmakar is the first Indian gymnast to participate in the Olympic Games.© Agence France-Presse
Gymnastics star Deepa Karmakar will compete in the National Senior Artistic Gymnastics Championships after a gap of eight years in Bhubaneswar next week. This prestigious event will take place from January 2 to 4. Besides Deepa, the tournament will feature the likes of Tokyo Olympian Pranati Nayak, Yogeshwar Singh, Rakesh Batra, Tapan Mohanty, Saif Tamboli, Gaurav Kumar and others.
“Deepa will compete in the senior category. The last time she participated in the national event was in 2015. She will be the last nationals here,” her coach Bisweswar Nandi told PTI.
The 30-year-old from Agartala, the first gymnast from India to compete in the Olympics, was snubbed at the Asian Games despite topping the qualifiers because she did not meet the SAI selection criteria for gymnasts who need to score the equivalent Eighth place. Gymnast at the recent Asian Games.
Since then she has been unable to participate in any events after being banned for 21 months for a doping violation.
But Nandy did not lose hope in his ward’s chances of qualifying for the Paris Olympics. Deepa has been recovering from a nagging knee problem for some time.
“She is gradually reaching 100 per cent and will compete in a few international events next year. Of course, she will have to do well in the selection trials to be in the Indian team,” Nandy said.
Odisha is all set to host the National Junior and Senior Artistic Gymnastics Championships at the Kalinga Stadium Gymnastics Centre.
The junior championship begins on Thursday, followed by the adult championship starting January 2.
A total of 750 participants, including 550 players, 120 support staff and 100 officials from across the country, are expected to reach the state to participate in the tournament which will see the participation of 28 affiliated units of the Gymnastics Federation of India.
“We are delighted to host the National Junior and Senior Artistic Gymnastics Championships here in Bhubaneswar which has the best infrastructure and facilities needed to conduct a national championship,” said Sudhir Mittal, President, Gymnastics Federation of India. Experience young and old participants showcasing their skills in a world-class venue.”
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