Perhaps Sunita Magar is among the very few Nepalis to achieve such a feat, that too at such a tender age.[break]
She does not even remember at what age she started learning judo. The 17-year-old teenager looks at her first certificate dated 2003 and says, “Maybe, I was 10 then.”
The first competition she participated in is memorable for her as she won a gold medal just three months after joining judo lessons at the New Horizon Judo Club.
“I was a white belt holder,” says Sunita, who now sports a national black belt. “I didn’t learn the basics of judo at that time. I directly learnt how to fight because the competition was around the corner. It was Catch & Throw,” she recalls.
The greatest achievement in her life is the bronze medal she won at the age of 15 during the Second Asian Youth Judo Championships 2008 held from July 3 to 5 in Sana, Yemen. She defeated a Yemeni and a Sri Lankan opponent but lost to an Indian. But her achievement is worth remembering as no other Nepali judo player has won a single medal at the Asian level.
Deepak Harsha Bajracharya, president of Nepal Judo Association, praises Sunita and says, “She created a historic record for Nepal.”
The only two words this soft-spoken athlete had after she returned from Yemen were “khushi lagyo” (feeling glad). She has opened up a lot in recent times and adds, “It was very difficult. I fought for the full time in one of the matches and was extremely tired. I managed to win the match during the extra time.”
She also won the silver medal in the South Asian Judo Championship 2008 held on September 12 and 13 in Kathmandu. She lost in the final match with the same Indian judoka, but is determined to win the next time.
However, she is in a one-year break from judo at present as she is preparing for her School Leaving Certificate (SLC) examination. Judo has brought her fame but it has also taken toll on her studies.
“We have to stay in closed camp whenever there’s any major tournament. We also have to go abroad for days. That has affected my studies a lot,” she says. She is a bit in a dilemma whether to continue judo or not.
Her father Ram Bahadur Magar said she is losing interest in judo these days. It was her father who encouraged her to join judo after Bajracharya and his acquaintance, Bishal Sunwar, a judo coach, convinced him to let Sunita learn it. He too does not motivate her nowadays. “There is fame in judo but it’s not enough to make a living from sports. I want her to concentrate on studies,” he says.
Although distressed, Sunita’s father says, “She’s the pride of our village.” Sunita and her family live in Balaju but they come from Kata in Nijgad of Bara district.
She has traveled to Lucknow twice where she once won gold and silver the next time, and to Hyderabad for judo competition. But she lamented that she hasn’t traveled much inside Nepal.
“I want to go to the mountains and play in the snow but I haven’t got that opportunity,” she says.
Besides judo, Sunita also enjoys dancing. “Dancing comes naturally to me,” she says and adds, “I’m more relaxed while dancing but tense while learning judo.”
But whatever might be the obstacles in judo, it surely has enhanced the confidence of the shy teenager.
Other awards that Sunita have received are the Talented Sportsman 2065 for Judo awarded by the Martyr Dashrath Chand Memorial Trust, the Best Player of Judo – 2065 awarded by Nepal National and International Players Association (NNIPA), Pulsar Player of the Year 2065 Nominee, and countless other awards.
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