Off the badminton court, Gopichand sparks an athletics revolution
- Manne Ratnakar
- TNN Jul 7, 2024, 17:39 IST IST
Badminton legend Pullela Gopichand has created a pipeline of athletics talent by identifying youngsters lacking the means to succeed and training them to beat the odds
In 2001, Pullela Gopichand won the All-England badminton title and instantly became the toast of sports lovers in India. His achievement inspired a generation of Indian shuttlers, many of whom would go on to learn from the legend at the training academy he set up in Hyderabad. But this is not their story.
Around 2003, Gopichand had started to actively promote running as part of the 10K Run Foundation. He was not only arranging the annual run but also conducting training programmes for budding athletes. He soon noticed that several female athletes would on and off miss practice sessions. Upon enquiring about it, he learnt that many of them were too poor to afford sanitary pads and would perforce give training a miss during periods.
Around 2003, Gopichand had started to actively promote running as part of the 10K Run Foundation. He was not only arranging the annual run but also conducting training programmes for budding athletes. He soon noticed that several female athletes would on and off miss practice sessions. Upon enquiring about it, he learnt that many of them were too poor to afford sanitary pads and would perforce give training a miss during periods.
