Help This Gifted Athlete Compete At The World Powerlifting Championships
With the advent of such leagues for cricket, football, kabaddi etc., the sports industry has grown into a behemoth with passionate fans throughout the nation.
But most athletes in India aren’t concerned with glamorous developments. They are more concerned with the crushing poverty that haunts them and the means to get two square meals a day. India has had a chronic propensity for selective amnesia or flat-out disregard for those athletes who may not belong to the aforementioned marquee disciplines.
In a nation where infrastructure, education and health care are still pressing needs for most of the population, the budget for sports is limited. Facilities for sportsmen and women, good coaches, international quality equipment — these are all out of reach for even the most talented of Indians.
Many of India’s promising athletes face financial difficulties that threaten the actualization of their sporting dreams at an early stage. This chronic lack of resources has undermined Indian performances at top events for a very long time, and those with the potential to bring home gold face far too many obstacles.
Mukesh Tripathi is one such individual.
He won bronze for India in the Asian Powerlifting Championship 2017 and 2018, and his only wish now is to compete in the World Championship and win another medal for his country.
But like many thousands blessed with physical gifts, his only problem is that he can’t afford the journey to get to that world stage.
The Journey
Tripathi is a big-time dreamer from a small town in Madhya Pradesh. His father never had enough money to fund his pursuits, but did teach him the values of hard work and discipline.
But he has persisted and made the best of his situation. He started at the very bottom, practicing in the local gym, slowly making his way up through the district championships, then State, which finally culminated with him winning gold at the National Championship, and his third-place position at last year’s Asian Powerlifting Championship.
This is a sport that requires a specific dietary consumption and highly specialized training equipment. Powerlifters need to maintain enormous body weight. And during competition prep, they need to consume high amounts of carbohydrates and protein that totals a whopping 5,000 to 6,000 calories a day. The average cost incurred on maintaining the diet itself ranges from Rs 30,000 to Rs 50,000 a month, according to many lifters.
And now he has his sights set on a bigger prize, which at the moment seems like a pipe dream because of the sheer expenses.
The prize in question is World Powerlifting Championships, which is the highest level of competition in this field is being held from 4 — 10 November in Sweden this year.
The cost for participating is Rs. 2 Lakhs, and with the government not allocating any funds for powerlifting, it’s an amount Tripathi just can’t afford.
But his tireless training and iron-clad commitment must be rewarded, all he needs is a little financial backing to allow him to compete in Sweden. With a little help from you, he surely will be able to achieve his dreams and make his nation proud once again.
How Ketto is helping Mukesh Tripathi
Ketto believes that sporting champions can be created when the right talent gets the right support at the right time. In order to give Indian athletes the best chance to excel consistently at the biggest events, they need a a professional and holistic ecosystem. Please click on the link below and help support our efforts to help Mukesh Tripathi.
Ketto Blog remains committed to inspiring and compelling social change to India’s most pressing problems through the power of great stories and engaging our audiences to take meaningful action.
