7 Pune skaters make it to Asian Games

All the seven, which includes Vikram Ingle, Siddhant Kamble, Jinesh Nanal, Vishvesh Patil, Shreyasi Joshi, Swarali Joshi and Yashodhan Patil, are gearing up for the 19th Asian Games to be held in Hangzhou, China in September-October.

Jinesh Nanal (19) a first year B-Tech student from MIT-WPU is among the finalists. Starting his journey as a roller skater at age 4, he switched to inline freestyle skating, a very popular sport in Asia. At 9, he represented India at several competitions such as the Asian Championship in Korea and the World Championship in the Netherlands in 2018.

“Jinesh has been into skating since the past 10-12 years, and is, at the moment, an 8-time national gold medalist. Now he has been selected for two events, namely Speed Slalom and Pair Slalom, along with Swarali Joshi for the upcoming Asian Games…,” said his mother Dr Sheetal Nanal. She said Jinesh was “putting in all efforts to make his mark at Asian Games,” she said.

“All players were picked for their talent, be it Vijram, Siddhant or Jinesh. They all train 6-8 hours a day in two sessions, morning and evening. Each session comprises at least 3 hours, with yoga and meditation sessions to help them focus. The training includes camps where all skaters train together for the Asian Games,” said coach Asutosh Japtap.

Elaborating on his preparation, Jinesh said, “I wake up at 5:30 am and train from 6 to 8:30 am at Kothrud. After rest at home, I study a while, and then I train again from 6pm to 9pm at Maharastriya Mandal in Mukundnagar.”

Shreyasi Joshi started her skating journey at a tender 3. She has been a national champion in inline freestyle skating for 8 years. She represented the country at World Roller Games in 2017 at the age of 12, and now she will represent India at Asian Games in Pair Slalom segment.

On being selected, Shreyasi said, “I am happy to represent our country at such a big stage like the Asian Games in the pair category. I am training 6 hours a day to bag one of the top 3 positions and win India a medal.”

Visvhesh Patil, who began skating at 4 and represented India at the 18th Asian Roller Skating Championship in 2018, said, “I am very glad to be selected for the Asian Games. It is one of the biggest sporting events, and to represent India is a dream come true. I will aim for a Gold Medal…”