Linthoi Chanambam is 16 years old and now is world champion in judo. She fought among the U57kg young women and was seeded 4th behind Alizada (AZE), Stella (ITA) and Russo, also from Italy.
For India Tulika Maan is the highest ranking Indian competitor among seniors, currently, sitting at number 90 on the World Ranking List at +78kg. There is a more positive story at junior level with 6 judoka inside the top 30 in their respective weight categories but only one just scraping into the top 20.
The cadet field is a whole different ball game but it’s only now that the world is sitting up to take notice. To have 9 athletes inside their weight’s top 30, including 4 among the top 20 and one safe in all event seedings at #4, we have to accept the trend. India has a new generation coming and as of August 2022, they have their first ever world champion, their first ever world medallist. It’s not a fluke. Look at the stats, the rankings, the trend. India is a new player and they intend to infiltrate the big leagues from now on.
Chanambam was over the moon with her world title: “I cannot explain now how I feel. I’m just very happy for this victory.”
From Manipur in northern India, the daughter of fish farmers, Linthoi is now fulfilling a dream she didn’t know she had until relatively recently. “I’m now in Bangalore for training. My coach is from Georgia and he has been living in India with us for the last 5 years.”
That’s the potted version but the details are important because they show vision and commitment on an unprecedented scale.
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