Class Apart

There are many like Sania and Vaibhav now. They are eager to learn new and not-so-common sports. For years,the city has witnessed youngsters trying to emulate the likes of Sachin Tendulkar or David Beckham. Now,they are looking beyond cricket and football. And they have plenty to choose from including,baseball and fencing.

Nair,who was trained in archery by a Malaysian coach,set up classes at the Prabhodhan Archery Centre,Goregaon,in 2005. “It was a struggle initially. However,the response now is overwhelming as parents understand the relevance of this sport,” he states. At Prabodhan,beginners hone their talents on wooden bows before moving on to recurve and compound bows—similar to the ones used in international competitions. It is the high cost of the equipment that often deters potential archers: the cost of a recurve bow starts from Rs 25,000,while compound bows start from Rs 40,000. “In India,parents of students are not willing to put in money until they see results,” he says. But things have been looking up. “We started off with seven students. Today,we have around 180 students and 24 targets. We encourage students to participate at the state and national level competitions.”

Youngsters in India seem to be kicked about chasing the American baseball dream as well. In 2006,Dipesh Indrapal Solanki became the first Indian coach to be certified by the Rod Dedeaux Research and Baseball Institute,which specialises in reducing injuries in the game. However,when Solanki returned to India,he wasn’t quite sure if things would work in his favour. “I was fortunate enough to find help from Changu Kana Thakur School in Panvel,” says the 27-year-old. He now grooms around 200 boys and girls in baseball every day and that too for free. “We get bats and mitts from USA. At present,we are only keen on encouraging more talent,” he says. Solanki hopes that baseball will become a “substitute for the saturated sport”,cricket,in India. “Those who don’t get a chance in cricket can enjoy this game because the competition is less.” Mumbai University has been hosting inter-collegiate baseball competitions for both men and women. Solanki hopes others will catch on.

Fencing too seems to have caught young Mumbaikars’ fancy. Dressed in white uniforms with masks,the aspiring fencers remind us of characters out of Star Wars. Their coach Kedar Dhawle smiles at this expression and reveals that things weren’t hunky-dory when he started fencing classes in 2003. “Most people hailed it as a risky venture,” says Dhawle,who despite all odds set up the Mumbai Suburban Fencing Association,Gorai,and began doing the rounds of city schools to demonstrate the sport. “Nalanda School in Gorai was upbeat about teaching a new sport and we were fortunate enough to find a taker,” says Dhananjay Lokhande,president of the association. Dhawle,who currently teaches around 27 students,uses three kinds of swords—epee,sabre and foil. “Depending upon the age,body structure and the ability of the student,we select the sword,” he says. And in order to draw more students,Lokhande holds these classes only over the weekends.

This summer,the young ones should give their bats a break and give in to the urge to wield a sword or bow.