Armed with a winning attitude

Art form

The focus and determination of Nagesh, a first-year MBA student of Sambhram College, has helped him win many laurels in Taekwondo. 

The humble champion has won many competitions including a gold medal in the state-level championship in the junior category.

He has also won three gold medals in the under 18 state-level championship and two bronze medals and one silver in the under 18 national-level championship.

Recently, he also won a bronze in the senior-level international championship held at Vishakhapatnam.

“I started learning Taekwondo at the age of seven. I always wanted to learn karate, but there was no teacher available in the vicinity. So I ended up learning this instead. I was very passionate about joining the Indian Army from a very young age and thought that learning martial arts might help me in the long run,” he elaborates.

Nagesh, who has a Black Belt Dan 2, has worked very hard to cross all the levels. 

“A lot of hard work goes in maintaining my physique. I run 400 metres and take 10 laps everyday in the morning and in the evening to be fit. I also take special care to eat protein-rich food as I do heavy exercises. As I have been learning the martial art for a long time, my body has become very used to the regimen,” he notes.

Ask him how he manages to juggle Taekwondo with academics and he says that though it is very difficult, his college authorities and teachers are very supportive.

"My teachers have been very supportive and have always encouraged me to pursue my dreams. In fact, I hardly attended classes when I was pursuing my degree as I had to train for some competitions. It has been a very tough journey for me and rejections and failures have taught me that I need to work harder,” he says.

He adds that not qualifying for the Olympics was one of the toughest moments for him and though it was difficult, he is determined to make it. 

“I could have done better and practised harder but I had to manage my academics and hence could not give my 100 per cent. But I have not lost hope and am putting in a lot of effort to qualify. I am sure to get through this time,” he notes.

Nagesh believes in disseminating knowledge and wants to teach martial art to others .

“I have been learning for more than 10 years now and feel that I am ready to teach children who show an interest in the art. I teach some children now. It also helps me  be in touch with the basic moves and better myself. I want to be a reputed coach as teaching gives me a lot of satisfaction,” he says.

The talented student is all set to make it big in the field of martial arts and feels that he can represent the State and the country with constant practice and discipline.