New damsels in discus

India’s performances in track have so dominated field that, when discus dame Swaranjit Kaur was named best woman athlete at the National Circuit Meet here on Thursday, the popular response was, `Who is she? What has she done?’

Given this dismal backdrop, the transformation in the past three years has been dramatic. Three women — Neelam J Singh, Swaranjit Kaur and Sugan Yadav — have repeatedly bettered the Games qualifying mark of 54 metres. All three have held the national record at some point; at least two are expected to go to Bangkok.

National head coach Bahadur Singh, a throw specialist who won the Asian Games gold in shot put in 1982, told The Indian Express, “their performanceshave been very encouraging. Neelam won the silver at the Asian Track (ATC) meet this July with a throw of 56.81. The distance for the bronze was 53-something. We can even bag two medals.”

Bahadur says a host of reasons have contributed to the renaissance, but competition among the trio has been the chief ingredient. In 1987, the national record was 47.82 metres; in 1995 the mark had improved by a paltry two metres to 49.86. But, since then, the national record has been as stable as the government at the Centre, and today stands at 57.94, created at the circuit meet at Bangalore this June.

The woman who holds the record, Neelam Singh, agrees with Bahadur. “We (this lot of participants) have been competing together since 1991. There has also been an increase in the number of tournaments. Though I lost to Swaranjit here, I am happy my performance is consistent.” Of that, there is no doubt: Five of her six throws on Thursday sailed past the 55-barrier.

In contrast, the five-foot-nothing Swaranjit Kaur iserratic — but deadly. Her fortunes in the event have eerily run parallel to the nation’s. The 22-year-old daughter of a doctor from Kuranganwali village, Sirsa, Haryana got four of her six throws on Thursday wrong, due to over-stepping and early release. But she posted her best throw, 56.95, with her third. Just eight months ago, she was struggling to go past 53!

Swaranjit, a MA (History) student of Punjab University, Patiala, speaks animatedly. “Lack of height used to cramp my throws. Russian coach Alexei Ivanov suggested I switch to a two-step style, with the centre leg moving ahead. That has given me more speed.” She admits the momentum causes her to overstep. “In every meet, three of my six throws are fouls,” she says with a wane smile.

Coach Alexei Ivanov, who took the discus throwers, barring Neelam Singh, under his wings at Patiala this February, admits that the flaw in Swaranjit’s action needs some ironing. “Her first step is too long, and that causes her to over-step,” says Ivanov, whoseprotege Faina Mernic won gold at the 1982 Munich Olympics, and was the first woman discus thrower to cross the 70-metre mark. But Ivanov, whose contract with the Amatuer Athletics Federation of India ends in December, is extremely pleased with Swaranjit’s progress. “She is the shortest among the lot, but she has the ability and dedication to do much better,” he says.