18.12.2015
With deaf athletes, coaches struggle to get instructions across; lack of customised training and specialised coaching other big hurdles
With deaf athletes, coaches struggle to get instructions across; lack of customised training and specialised coaching other big hurdles
Disabled athletes face an array of obstacles in their way. They are as varied as they are numerous — ranging from the apathy of the officials to the lack of customised facilities at training and accommodation. The absence of advanced coaching techniques specific to disabled athletes is a big hindrance, too.
Good coaching depends on effective and thorough communication — so how does a coach communicate with a deaf-mute athlete? For a deaf-mute athlete, learning the technical intricacies of his or her sport becomes a massive challenge.
Gursimran Singh Sidhu and Parul Gupta are two athletes who have overcome this challenge to excel in sport. Patiala girl Parul has won countless medals in tennis, and her latest feat was winning a bronze medal in women’s doubles in the 8th Asia Deaf Pacific Games in Taiwan in October. High-jump specialist Gursimran, who hails from Amritsar, represented India in the same event and bagged the fourth place in his event.
The stories of these two athletes exemplify the difficulties that confront disabled athletes; they also show that success for disabled athletes is impossible without great support and sacrifices made by their families. Their parents/family must work very hard with their coaches to hone their talent.
Jumping star
Gursimran, 18, is the only child of his parents and has been training at NIS, Patiala, for over three years. He is a student of Class XII in Patiala School for Deaf and Dumb, Saifdipur. He is currently preparing for next month’s National Games, which will serve as a trial for the World Deaf Games.
His journey hasn’t been easy. As a child, he was initially enrolled in a ‘normal’ school, but since he could not learn anything there, his parents enrolled him in the Mook Badhir Vidyalaya in Sri Ganganagar. He was interested in sports, and began to train in high jump under a local coach, Mohan Lal. Lal advised his parents to get him trained by specialised coaches, and the family moved to Patiala in 2012.
In Patiala, coaching Gursimran has been a learning experience for coach Varinder Kumar Verma as well. “He is the first special child I have ever worked with and it certainly is a unique experience,” says Verma. “High jump is a technical sport and there were many things I just could not communicate to the child when he came to me two years back.”
Verma says he tried to get the help of Gursimran’s parents to communicate with the boy, but it wasn’t helpful. “Since they did not have much knowledge about the sport, it wasn’t of much help,” says Verma.
Then Verma thought of using video clips. “I started downloading videos on my phone, and it was easier to explain with them. Gradually, we started understanding each other’s body language and signs,” he adds. “He even started attending my diploma classes. His performance has improved remarkably. When he came to me, he was jumping about 1.35m — he’s reached 1.90m now.”
Tennis star
Parul, also 18, started playing tennis at age four in Patiala. She loved the sport and was evidently talented. Her parents took her to Canada in 2009, hoping to find better training facilities for their child. However, due to financial reasons they decided to come back to India.
Her father, Avinash Gupta, says it was tough for her to learn the basics of tennis because of the communication problem. It was extremely frustrating for her parents, coaches and Parul herself, but she never gave up.
“Working with her required a lot of effort,” says her coach, Gurvarinder Singh Sahota of the Tennis Excellence Academy (Mohali). “Unlike with the other kids, I could not just give her the directions and walk away to the next player — everything had to be physically demonstrated. One had to be present with her throughout to help her.”
Sahota began to communicate with Parul through the written word, and then began to use videos too. “I started interacting with her through messages, and then I would make her watch videos about various techniques,” says Sahota. “We soon were able to communicate well, and things became smooth. Now even fellow players are able to easily communicate with her through sign language.”
The coaches of both Parul and Gursimran say that their wards are extremely focussed.
“Parul never misses her practice sessions,” says her father, Avinash Gupta.
“He has very less distractions in his life because he cannot hear,” Verma says about Gursimran. “That is his biggest strength, rather than a disadvantage.
Good coaching depends on effective and thorough communication — so how does a coach communicate with a deaf-mute athlete? For a deaf-mute athlete, learning the technical intricacies of his or her sport becomes a massive challenge.
Gursimran Singh Sidhu and Parul Gupta are two athletes who have overcome this challenge to excel in sport. Patiala girl Parul has won countless medals in tennis, and her latest feat was winning a bronze medal in women’s doubles in the 8th Asia Deaf Pacific Games in Taiwan in October. High-jump specialist Gursimran, who hails from Amritsar, represented India in the same event and bagged the fourth place in his event.
The stories of these two athletes exemplify the difficulties that confront disabled athletes; they also show that success for disabled athletes is impossible without great support and sacrifices made by their families. Their parents/family must work very hard with their coaches to hone their talent.
Jumping star
Gursimran, 18, is the only child of his parents and has been training at NIS, Patiala, for over three years. He is a student of Class XII in Patiala School for Deaf and Dumb, Saifdipur. He is currently preparing for next month’s National Games, which will serve as a trial for the World Deaf Games.
His journey hasn’t been easy. As a child, he was initially enrolled in a ‘normal’ school, but since he could not learn anything there, his parents enrolled him in the Mook Badhir Vidyalaya in Sri Ganganagar. He was interested in sports, and began to train in high jump under a local coach, Mohan Lal. Lal advised his parents to get him trained by specialised coaches, and the family moved to Patiala in 2012.
In Patiala, coaching Gursimran has been a learning experience for coach Varinder Kumar Verma as well. “He is the first special child I have ever worked with and it certainly is a unique experience,” says Verma. “High jump is a technical sport and there were many things I just could not communicate to the child when he came to me two years back.”
Verma says he tried to get the help of Gursimran’s parents to communicate with the boy, but it wasn’t helpful. “Since they did not have much knowledge about the sport, it wasn’t of much help,” says Verma.
Then Verma thought of using video clips. “I started downloading videos on my phone, and it was easier to explain with them. Gradually, we started understanding each other’s body language and signs,” he adds. “He even started attending my diploma classes. His performance has improved remarkably. When he came to me, he was jumping about 1.35m — he’s reached 1.90m now.”
Tennis star
Parul, also 18, started playing tennis at age four in Patiala. She loved the sport and was evidently talented. Her parents took her to Canada in 2009, hoping to find better training facilities for their child. However, due to financial reasons they decided to come back to India.
Her father, Avinash Gupta, says it was tough for her to learn the basics of tennis because of the communication problem. It was extremely frustrating for her parents, coaches and Parul herself, but she never gave up.
“Working with her required a lot of effort,” says her coach, Gurvarinder Singh Sahota of the Tennis Excellence Academy (Mohali). “Unlike with the other kids, I could not just give her the directions and walk away to the next player — everything had to be physically demonstrated. One had to be present with her throughout to help her.”
Sahota began to communicate with Parul through the written word, and then began to use videos too. “I started interacting with her through messages, and then I would make her watch videos about various techniques,” says Sahota. “We soon were able to communicate well, and things became smooth. Now even fellow players are able to easily communicate with her through sign language.”
The coaches of both Parul and Gursimran say that their wards are extremely focussed.
“Parul never misses her practice sessions,” says her father, Avinash Gupta.
“He has very less distractions in his life because he cannot hear,” Verma says about Gursimran. “That is his biggest strength, rather than a disadvantage.
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