What this Tripura girl has achieved in the last three years is nothing short of a miracle in a sport, which never in history was taken seriously or even talked about.
Dipa Karmakar is the latest poster girl of Indian sport. Even before her finals here in Rio, she is the darling of the foreign media. There are a large number of requests for her interview and TV shoots and everyone is being told to wait till Sunday, when she will be in the indoor hall to create history.
What this Tripura girl has achieved in the last three years is nothing short of a miracle in a sport, which never in history was taken seriously or even talked about.
Already world famous
She has been getting visitors from all over the world, including the world champion from the US, Simone Biles, to ask how she has got so much of courage to master the Produnova vault.
The memories of French gymnast Samir Ait, who shattered his left leg a few days ago during the qualifying rounds, has still not faded. And remember Ait was not even performing the most dangerous Produnova trick. The entire arena heard the sharp crack when his left tibia and fibula shattered as he landed his vault.
And here is our brave-heart Dipa, who is ready to execute the 'vault of death' in her attempt to become the first Indian gymnast to win an Olympic medal.
The 22-year-old is more than happy to "take chances". "I believe that practice makes one perfect, and then it is not difficult any more," she said, adding: "Nandi sir (my coach) has ensured all these years that I practised extensively."
Champion Simone Biles has already said "she had no plans to die", when asked if she would try the Produnova. US coach Maggie Haney has already announced that "no US gymnast was going to attempt the vault of death".
"In the last three months, I did 1,000 repeats of the move. Now it is the easiest vault for me," the first Indian gymnast to compete at the Games since 1964, said after reaching her first Olympic final.
Despite all odds
Dipa was born with flat feet, which is certainly considered not a good physical sign for any gymnast. And being in a state like Tripura, she has was not exposed to even the basic facilities conducive for gymnastics.
She has made up till here in Rio with her sheer determination and grit. This 4-ft-11-inch gymnast, a potential powerhouse in Indian sport, is happy that finally her physio Sjad Ahmad has reached the Games Village. So many earlier requests were not even paid attention to by Indian officials.
It was only after Dipa politely told sports minister Vijay Goel about her problem after reaching the finals that Ahmad - who was deemed 'wasteful' - was rushed to Rio to keep Dipa in good shape and health.
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