Kunjarani on board,Sandhya wins in comeback trail

That was 9 years back at the National Games in Vishakapatnam. The 48kg contest was supposed to be a two horse race between multiple Asian Championship gold medalist Kunjurani and Sanamacha Chanu but ultimately it was Sandhya Rani who broke the then national record held by Kunjurani and won the gold.

“Even then she was always helpful. She was already a very experienced lifter and had already won medals at the World Championships and the Asian Games. I didn’t even have a job and was only training at SAI Bangalore. But she would be giving me tips,” recalls Sandhya Rani. “It was perhaps because we were both from Manipur and so we had to stick together,” jokes Kunjarani who after a long spell out of competition has been coaching since the last one year.

That win was supposed to mark out Sandhya Rani for big things but those expectations have failed to materialise completely. She won a bronze in the 2010 CWG but her form dipped badly soon after. She finished outside medal contention at the 2010 Asian Games and lost her place in the national camp with her main competitor Soniya Chanu sealing the quota spot for the 2012 Olympics. Her clean and jerk mark of 85kg to win the Police championships is 25kg short of her personal best of 105 kg set at the Vishakapatnam games.

Surprisingly there is little rancour from Sandhya Rani. “Yes it is the dream to take part in the Olympics but the fact of the matter is that for many different reasons,I did not put in the effort that was needed for such a dream to come through,” she says.

Her coach Kunjarani explains further. “2011 was a difficult time for Sandhya. She picked up a shoulder injury and had to rest completely for two months but the injury was a chronic one. Then there were too many troubles for her from home. Her father was no more and then her mother also passed away,meaning that she had to manage a lot of issues at the same time. I could understand because even at the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games,I learnt that my mother had suffered a brain hemorrhage. It was next to impossible for me to compete but somehow I managed to win a gold,” says Kunjarani.

Kunjarani asserts that such periods are all about luck. “I was lucky with the CWG but at the 2004 Olympics I missed out on a bronze by just one spot. Sandhya too has had some bad luck but that will change,” she says.

Sandhya Rani is modest about her chances. “Its going to be difficult for me to make a return. I am 30 and it isn’t easy for me to lift the weights I used to do when I was younger. Right now my goal is simply to compete in the Nationals in Delhi. If I feel no pain in my shoulder when I compete then that will be reward enough for me,”she says. It is her coach who has faith. “I achieved my best performance (and current national record of 190 kg) in Athens when I was 34 years old. I think Sandhya can perform still better,” she says.

Results:Mens 56kg -Vikram (CRPF) 222 kg; Gurpal Singh (Punjab Police)212 kg; G Manikraj (TN Police) 194 kg.

Womens 48kg- Sandhya Rani Devi (CRPF) 149 kg; Asha Rani (BSF) 141kg; Deepa Mehra (Uttarakhand Police) 137 kg