When the Aisan Sprint Queen hung up her spikes...

PT Usha - a name that needs no introduction. The Asian Sprint Queen had the tracks on fire for 2 decades. Trained under coach Nambiar, Usha still remains the finest lady athelete from India. Her dream was to win an Olympic medal for her country.

After winning Golds & Silvers in many international championships, Usha participated in the Russian Olympics in 1980. This was her very first Olympic experience and turned out to be a disaster - why? Because she was trained only on mud and sand and found it hard to adjust on the concrete. In fact it was so tough that she failed to qualify for the Olympic finals. That's when she realised how much more she had to learn back home. She would have to wait for another 4 years before she could try for the medal.

Back home, she trained harder - unfortunately there was no support for her or her sport from the Indian officials. Cricket was the only craze in India (and sadly things have changed only a little) Usha was on her own and the only person who believed in her potential was her coach, Nambiar. In 1984, at the Los Angeles Olympics, PT Usha made it to the finals. That is when the entire nation took notice. She was more confident now and was aiming for a medal. She put in her best efforts and finished the race... the results were out. They announced the 1st and the 2nd winner and paused... they were not sure who the bronze winner was. Then after a long pause they announced PT Usha at number 4. The Asian Sprint Queen had missed the 3rd spot by a 1/100 th of a second in a photo-finish. Her dream was shattered... she was to realise later that only a dip in the front would have given her the silver or a bronze... her mistake was just that she did not bend in the front! Even today, she reminds her students of her mistake so that they dont repeat the same.

The Olympic effort was achieved solely by Usha and her Coach... it's very unfortunate that a nation couldnt make her run faster by 1/100 th of a second.

She went on to win many gold medals in the Asian Championships in the next few years... and in 1988 she took part once again in the Olympics. The training she received for 1988 Olympics was mostly on hurdles - so much, that she had an ankle injury. She would tell her coach and other officials about it, but everyone gave her a deaf ear... she had to pay the price for being over-trained... she didnt qualify in the finals of the 1988 Olympics!

This brought in a lot of criticism from the entire nation... people would pelt stones at her house in Kerala... but she didn't give up. She played on and in 1990 Beijing Asian Games she won 3 silver and announced retirement.

In 1991 she got married (arranged marriage) to a police officer named Srinivasan (only after she learnt that he was interested in sports!!!) and slipped comfortably into her new life with the birth of a son.

After some years, sensing her restlessness, her husband asked her if she wanted to join sports. The Olympic dream haunted her and she was keen to give it another shot. "Yes" came the reply and she approached her coach Nambiar. But her coach was not confident. So with a new coach training her and with the support of her husband, PT Usha once again aimed for the medal. She had 3 years to train for this and her training became very rigorous. Just a few months before the Olympics, she had a torn ligament and she couldnt participate in the Olympics. But at the age of 34, she participated in the Fukuoka Championships and won 2 bronze medals for India in 1998. In the year 2000 Usha hung up her spikes and took a vow to train the young women of India. Her dream still remains to win an Olympic medal.

She now runs U.S.H.A. (Usha ScHool of Athletics) in Kerala which helps youngsters in developing their talent. She's running a long race today hoping to make the Indian dream come true. And one day, it will. Coz I believe that India doesnt lack talent - what it lacks, is support for sports other than cricket.

Hats off to the lady who is an inspiration to many future athelets!

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