RISHABH PAREKH, OP
Bhubaneswar: The senior & national gymnastics camp, which commenced February 11 and will conclude March 15 marks a significant milestone for the Odisha AM/ NS India Gymnastics High Performance Centre (HPC). The selection of the HPC as the official venue to host the national camp is a major achievement, reflecting strong confidence in its world-class infrastructure, high-performance training systems, and integrated sports science support. In the senior category, Women’s Artistic Gymnastics (WAG) athletes Pranati Nayak and Tanu, along with Men’s Artistic Gymnastics (MAG) gymnast Tapeswaranath Das from the High Performance Centre, have been selected to participate in the national camp.
Adding to this proud moment, chief coach Ashok Mishra has been appointed as the coach for the senior WAG team at the national camp, further recognising his expertise and leadership in developing elite gymnasts. On being asked about the training and exposure in the camp, National Games silver medallist and international gymnast Tapeswaranath said, “Our main targets are Asian and Commonwealth Games. We have national championships incoming, which would be great for the selection process of top gymnasts for the Indian team. We have great foreign coaches here that guide us with our Monday to Saturday routine, leaving Sunday to rest.” Mentoring the country’s top gymnasts, Rakesh Kumar Patra, Indian gymnastics coach added, “The main thing about gymnastics is artistic, meaning beautiful. WAG gymnastics for girls is the main category that demands choreography. Balance in strength, stability and coordination is what will push woman gymnastics. We are grateful for the top infrastructure and facilities thanks to Odisha AM/NS India Gymnastics High Performance Centre and Ashok sir.
The dream is to make Odisha ‘a gymnastics hub’.” In the junior category, Odisha’s Biru Chandra Rao has been selected for the national camp and will represent India at the prestigious DTB Pokal Stuttgart from March 19–22 in Germany, providing him with valuable international competitive exposure.
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