KATHMANDU, April 10: Sakuntala Budhathoki, a ninth grader at Jana Kalyan Higher Secondary School in remote Tharmare village in Salyan district, had heard about the Fifth National Games, but until two months ago she had never dreamt of participating in them herself.[break]
Still in early her teens, Sakuntala’s life suddenly changed when teachers at her school said that she was going to participate in a long distance run to be held in Kathmandu.
She came to Kathmandu with just one and half months’ practice and won a bronze medal in the race with a timing of 42 min 36.64 seconds. She was naturally very happy after the win but it was a bit of a shock for the spectators as she looked so little that she was barely visible among the other contestants.
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She was not even properly outfitted for the race as she was wearing outsized snickers borrowed from her friend and the effect on the track was apparent. “The boots were heavy, so it was very uneasy” she told myrepublica.com after the race.
Sakuntala Budhathoki during her 10,000m run.
Dipesh Shrestha
Sakuntala’s story has raised other questions too. What is the age bar for a participant in national level games, particularly in events like the 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter runs, the marathon, boxing, weightlifting and martial arts that involve sparring. But nobody seems to care about these matters.
“In the marathon there is an age bar of 18 years, but there is no such age bar for other long-distance events” said Mid-Western Region team athletics coach Chandra Bahadur Gurung. Nepal Amateur Athletics Association general secretary Rabi Rajkarnikar said, “We are taking this Games as a selection tournament for the upcoming South Asian Games, and however talented Sakuntala may be, we can’t choose her because she is too young”.
“You can’t participate in international-level matches at 13 years of age. Yes of course, we can look after this girl as talent for the future and nurture her accordingly”, Rajkarnikar added.
Apart from Sakuntala, Vishow Rupa Budha, who won the 10,000 meters, is also very young at 14, and studying in class 10 in Jumla district. The coaches who trained them for just two months were very happy over the success of these young athletes. But it seems they were the least bothered who would have been held responsible if something had gone wrong while the two children were running their 25 laps in the stadium.
And they are not alone. Two weight lifters, Indira B. K. and Tika Maya Gurung, are 12-years-old. Both are studying in class 6 at Bhadrakali Higher Secondary School in Kaski. Indira is under 49 kg and took part in the 53 kg category while Vishow is just 44 kg and competed in 47 kg category.
Sakuntala Budhthoki, Vishow Rupa Budha, Indira BK and Tika Maya Gurung may have a very bright future in their respective disciplines as claimed by their coaches, but it is for certain that they will miss their childhood. More than that, allowing under-age children to compete at the national level is a violation of Olympic committee rules. The committee raised a hue and cry over under-age participation in the Beijing Olympics.
What is the right age for participation in which sport is an issue that needs immediate attention from the National Sports Council.
bhaskar@myrepublica.com
