Breaking Stereotypes: Indian Sportswomen Conquering Male Dominated Sports
Photo by Slum Soccer / CC BY-SA 4.0
Empowering Girls and Women Football
The performance of the Indian Team at the 2018 Asian Games was nothing short of tremendous. Indians are still celebrating the winning of a total of 69 medals by Indian sportsmen and women, the country’s highest medal tally yet in the tournament. While the performance was exceptional on both sides, the Indian sportswomen, along with making history, garnered well-deserved praise all over the media by setting an example and encouraging other young women to pursue sports as a career. In honour of such brilliant performances, here are the stories of 4 brilliant sportswomen who are absolutely shattering stereotypes and making names for themselves in sports, which are still viewed as a man’s sport in India.
Alisha Abdullah Indian Racer
Photo by Jnc xavier / CC BY-SA 3.0
This young woman is not only the first female racecar driver, but also the only woman superbike racer in India. Alisha’s passion for racing begun since before she was a teenager, when she entered Go-Karting racing events and subsequently winning them all. Her first big win came at the age of 13, when she won the MRF National Go-Karting Championship. After that, Alisha never looked back and immersed herself full time in the bike and car racing world.
Her performance in national competitions has been tremendously consistent. She has also gained rapid international fame representing India abroad, by bringing no less than two podium finishes in international motorsport competitions. She is the only Indian woman to confidently compete with 600cc superbikes giving tough competition to other male competitors. At the age of 24, she was the first woman winner of the Volkswagen Polo Club.
She attributes her interest in racing from an early age to her father, R. A. Abdullah, seven-time bike racing national champion. Her passion, often hindered by the high costs of racing, led her to open the first ever racing academy for women to develop enthusiasm and encourage participation from women all over India.
Harshita Tomar
The 16-year-old is another inspirational story of a girl who, with her zealous passion ,took the wind out of men’s sail, landing on the podium with a bronze medal in Asian Games 2018. In fact, she was the only female participant among the top ten who participated in the Open Laser 4.7 Sailing category. Her win has been extra special as she had only practiced on lakes, but took on world-class competitors in the sea earning a bronze medal for India. Harshita has been winning medals in the sailing category since entering the sport 4 years ago and has also been awarded ‘best sailor of the country’ award this year.
Initially, her parents were hesitant to allow their young daughter to prioritize sports over her education. But her talent led sailors from the national academy to persuade her parents and rest is history.
WSOP 2018: Meet Muskan Sethi: India’s presidential poker ambassador
Photo by Danny Maxwell / PokerStars Blog
In the field of mind sports, Muskan Sethi has made a prominent name for herself in poker. This year she was honored by the President of India, along with other Indian women who have not only entered but have made a mark for themselves in the traditionally male-dominated areas. She is also India’s presidential poker ambassador and captain of the Delhi Team in Global Player League.
It comes as no surprise that she faced difficulties explaining her passion for the sport and has faced judgments from the society. But amongst all, her family has always been supportive and are also one of the primary reason she got into Poker. Her journey and achievements are excellent examples of breaking the stereotype by breaking into a sport, which is traditionally regarded as a pastime for the western male.
Rupa Singh
The first, and the finest, female Indian jockey has shaken the circuit of a predominantly male-centered sports in India by registering over 700 win – including international tournaments in Poland, Germany and Abu Dhabi, among others – under her name. Rupa Singh has beaten several famous and previously unbeatable world jockeys, making the country proud. The 35-year-old has been riding horses with her father and grandfather since the age of 4.
She has been quite vocal about her struggle to enter the jockey circuit: trainers doubting her talent and ultimately rejecting her just because she, being a female compared to males, lacks the power to control a horse. She stated in an interview that her passion for the sports grew as she started winning races and never looked back, showing the world women can be as good as any men. Her story is a prime example of how age and gender are no excuse to become a world known jockey.
These 4 remarkable women prove that dedication, talent, and hard work are the elements for being a successful sportsperson, not gender and narrow-minded views of the society. Not only are they breaking stereotypes and proving that women are no less than men, they are inspiring and simultaneously supporting other talented women to enter sports fields that are considered unconventional for females by sharing their success tips, experiences, and knowledge.