BHUBANESWAR: Following the footstep of Odisha’s ace gymnast Rakesh Patra, local boy Tapan Mohanty shines on the inaugural day of the GFI Artistic Gymnastics Selection Trials for the Asian Games. He bagged third place in the men's senior individual provisional results held at Kalinga Stadium on Tuesday.
The 17-year-old from Puri participated in a senior-level competition for the first time and surprised many by finishing third.
“My father, Lokanath Mohanty, was a nationally reputed wrestler and my elder brothers, both working as Jagannath Temple sevayat, have always supported me to pursue my sporting career. I joined Sports Hostel Puri in 2011 under the guidance of coach Ashok Mishra to learn gymnastics.”, said Tapn Mohanty.
“At the age of five years, I saw some young players of Sports Hostel practicing in gymnastics. That fascinated me a lot. I told my parents that I wanted to pursue the sport. Being a wrestler, my father supported me.” added Tapan.
“For better training facilities, I shifted from Puri to join SAI Sports Centre at Kolkata with my coach Ashok Mishra. Under his training, I won gold (parallel bar) and silver (steel ring) categories in the National Jr Gymnastic Championship 2019 in Pune. After that, I got selected for the Khelo India scheme and never looked back. Presently I am practicing at the Gymnastic HPC here. The facilities in Kalinga Stadium are one of the best in India”, Tapan said.
With the success at the Kalinga Stadium, Tapan has his eyes set on the bigger goals. “I aim to win medals in Commonwealth Games and Olympic Games in the Steel Rings, Parallel Bar and Floor exercise categories.”
“Already, one Odia gymnast (Patra) was selected for the Asian Games based on his achievement in the Asian Artistic Gymnastic Championship held in Singapore. Tapan has a bright future. He may get a chance to qualify for the upcoming Asian Games”, Ashok Sahu, Chairman of the Selection Committee said.
