Her dad is a karate instructor and watching his kicks and chops, a young Amritha Vijayan started learning the martial art at the age of 5.
In no time, it became a lot more than an extra-curricular activity for the Varkala girl. A ninth grader now, she recently became the first female martial artist from Kerala to qualify for the Asian Karate Championship, after winning a gold medal at the national tournament. The 15-year-old is busy preparing for the tournament, which will be held in Japan in May.
“Winning the gold in the nationals itself was a thing of pride, and a lot of effort went into it,” says the soft-spoken black-belt holder. A student of Government Higher Secondary School, Varkala, Amritha has been training under her father Vijayan, from an early age. “He has an academy in Varkala and is also the coach of Sainik School, Thiruvananthapuram. My dad is a seventh dan black belt holder in karate. When I started out, there weren’t many girls in the academy. However, my sister Avanthika and I trained in the martial art and over time, more women joined,” she recalls.
Her mom Geetha used to accompany her for the tournaments for years together but now, a confident Amritha says she can handle her own safety. “Due to the high expense, my parents don’t accompany me now and I am also going to Japan without them. I am confident enough to take care of myself, thanks to my passion for karate,” she says.
Amritha is also thrilled that the tournament will be held in the island of Okinawa, which is believed to be where karate originated. “It is famed for having the longest-living people in the world. Studies have found that practising martial arts is what helps them stay strong and healthy and live long,” she says. In fact, it was her dad’s dream to visit this island. “I am glad that he is getting to fulfill it through me. I can’t wait to check out the place,” she beams.
She is also happy that karate is now included in the Olympics, with it debuting in Tokyo 2020. “For a lot of us who are into the martial art, this has served as an inspiration to work harder. Getting to represent one’s country at Olympic Games is truly an unparalleled honour and I hope many people from the country make it to the Olympics for karate,” says the youngster, who wishes to join the police force when she grows up.
Ask her about her own expectations for the upcoming Asian Games as well as Tokyo 2020 and she says, “I can’t say anything on that yet, but I know I will give it my all.”
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News> City News> Kochi News / by Deepa Soman / TNN / April 05th, 2018
“The more you sweat in training, the less you bleed in combat like ny sweet baby Amritha”.