Dreams to bring for the country crashed when financial constraints forced top-notch woman athlete to skip Asian Arm-Wrestling Championship in Malaysia and World Championship in France.
India Tomorrow reported that Afiya Khan from the Dibrugarh district of Assam failed to represent India at Asian Championship in Malaysia in June 2022 and World Championship in France in September owing to financial constraints.
It was a personal setback for her and the country as Afiya was confident of bringing glory to India by winning the Gold medal. However, she has not lost hope. On the contrary, she plans to participate in the next event.
After winning three silver medals in three separate categories in the Second National Arm-wrestling Championship in May 2022 in Goa, Afiya qualified to represent India at the World Championship in France in September 2022 and the Asian Championship in Malaysia in June 2022 based on her performance. However, she could participate in the two events due to the financial crisis in the family. She is now looking for someone who can sponsor her World Championships in the future.
In 2016, she competed in a college event and defeated the competition’s previous champion. From then on, she started engaging in arm wrestling, and despite all odds, she hasn’t looked back. Afiya was given the opportunity to practice with the Dibrugarh Arm Wrestling School after the office-bearers recognized her outstanding talent following her success in college. So she worked out with them and occasionally participated in local competitions. She has now won three state championships, and most recently, she took home three silver medals in three arm-wrestling competitions in Goa this year.
“Life has been harder after my father’s demise. He was the head of the family and the lone earner. Even while I never considered giving up playing games, I did need to take a few pauses to re-energize my mind before returning to practice for the upcoming competition. Losing my father left me significantly weaker in many ways, but it also gave me some strength to realize his desire to see me succeed. My family has been my main source of support after my father’s death. After my father passed away, my mother took excellent care of me regarding my finances, mental health, and emotional support,” she told India Tomorrow.
“Earlier, we were able to go on because of my father’s earlier savings and family assistance. Because neither my brother nor I are employed, we are struggling financially. I’m looking for a job also to support my family. In honor of my late father, I want to start a `sports academy’ for all sports, not only arm wrestling. I wish to achieve it and use that academy to serve my state and my nation by developing sports legends who can represent India in international competitions.”
Afiya said there is no talent scarcity in the Northeast and Assam in particular. “Here, boys and girls have eventually created their own space in the domain of sports and are making India proud by winning medals in Olympic Games. Achievement of MC Mary Kom, who became the first woman boxer to win an Olympic medal, and Lovalina Borgohain from Assam, who won a bronze in the Olympics in Tokyo in 2020, has encouraged many boys and girls in Assam,” she said
Afiya completed her high school education at Sacred Heart School, Dibrugarh, and her secondary education at Little Flower School. After that, she enrolled at Dibrugarh Hanumanbax Surajmall Kanoi (DHSK) College, earning her B. Com and MCom.
