Mumbai: India’s young sprinter Hima Das on Friday revealed that she did not tell her parents that she was taking part in the IAAF U-20 World Championship in Finland.
In July, 18-year-old Hima scripted history by becoming the first Indian woman to win a gold at the IAAF World Under-20 Athletics Championships as she clinched top spot in the women’s 400m final race on the third day of competitions.
“I did not tell my parents that I was playing such a big tournament. I told them that it was a small game. My parents saw it on television. After I reached the room and called my father, he said ‘I was going to sleep’,” recalled Hima.
“I said, I became world champion and you are sleeping, to which my dad said, let’s see in the morning. Apart from winning the gold medal in Finland, Hima claimed three medals, including a gold, at the Asian Games.
She acknowledged that the road ahead will be difficult. “It will be a challenge, and I will have to train well. It will be a little tough,” she said.
Hima said that post her success, her village in Assam has got new roads and electricity has also come up there.
“There are changes which I noticed, there is a new road and lights have come up in the village,” she said. (PTI)
