GAYA, May 14: Manipur’s martial art Thang-Ta, one of the five indigenous sports contested at Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG) 2025, concluded on Wednesday at Gaya. Host Bihar made history by bagging their first gold medals, while Manipur had the biggest haul with three gold medals.
The sports department is determined to popularise indigenous sports like Thang-Ta, Mallakhamb, Gatka, Kalarippayattu, and Yogasana. People running these sports all across the country are looking to get a berth for their respective sports in the 2036 Olympics, which India intends to host for the first time in its history.
As far as Thang-Ta is concerned, Huidrom Premkumar has been the lone force in the development and growth of the sport. Now 70, Premkumar shed light on the Thang-Ta journey.
“The sport was banned by the British in 1891 because it was causing them trouble. Through the efforts of a local Raja, it was brought back in 1930, and thereafter my guru Rajkumar Sanahan took charge,” he said.
When Sanahan passed away in 1988, the Thang-Ta baton fell to Premkumar’s lot, and he has since tried to take it to all corners of India and abroad. South Korea and Iran have hosted Thang-Ta events, all thanks to him. The real boost for the sport came in 2021 when the Government of India decided to bring it to the KIYG. The sport has grown since.
Thang-Ta has two variants in the KIYG. One is Phunaba Ama, which is the traditional one in which the participants use a sword (Cheibee in Manipuri) and a shield (Chungoi in Manipuri).The other category is Phunaba Anishuba, invented by Premkumar himself. Here, there is no shield (Chungoi), but kicking is allowed. In all, 25 states and 128 athletes across four weight categories (-52kg & -56kg for girls and -56kg & -60kg for boys) participated in the sport with eight gold medals at stake. The three-day event from May 12-14 saw pre-quarterfinals, quarterfinals, semifinals, and finals played amid much excitement.
Manipur bagged three out of eight available gold medals thanks to Thokchom Srinivas Singh, Konjengbam Pareihanba Singh, and Thangjam Lembisana Devi, while Bihar and Assam bagged two each. One gold to Madhya Pradesh. Priya Prerna and Mahika Kumari made the host state proud by winning gold in Phunaba Ama (-52kg) and Phunaba Anishuba (-56kg). These were Bihar’s first gold medals in KIYG history. They also won three bronze medals.
Bihar coach Sarangthem Tiken Singh, who originally hails from Manipur and was appointed Bihar coach following a request from the local federation to the national federation, played a key role in the Thang-Ta success for the host state.
Harschit, Nishika top performers in
Artistic Gymnastics
Harschit D. of Uttar Pradesh and Nishika Aggarwal of Telangana remained the top stars of the artistic gymnastics competitions. The Khelo India Athlete (KIA) duo continued their medal-winning run on Wednesday, ending their campaign on a high. After clinching gold in their all-round final events on Tuesday, Harschit bagged double gold in the Floor Exercise and Vaulting Table events, respectively, as well as a silver in the Still Rings event.
Nishika, 17, meanwhile, picked gold in the Vaulting Table event as well as double bronze in the Uneven Bars and Balancing Beam events on Wednesday. She, however, wasn’t too happy with her performance on Wednesday. (IANS)
