Army officers had to persuade Neeraj Chopra’s family to let him join Rajputana Rifles underV

The Army officers had to persuade Tokyo Olympics gold medalist Neeraj Chopra’s family to let him join Rajputana Rifles under the sports quota.

HIGHLIGHTS

•         Neeraj's parents were hesitant for him to join the ranks in the army
•         The officers of the Rajputana Rifles had visited Neeraj’s home to persuade his parents
•         There are two procedures followed in the Army, for preparing sportsmen of excellence

 

As a budding athlete, Neeraj Chopra, the only gold medal winner for India in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, underwent world-class training and strict discipline under the Indian Army. But his parents were hesitant for him to join the ranks in the army.

 

The officers of the Rajputana Rifles had visited Neeraj’s home to persuade his parents to let him be a part of the army for his brighter future as an athlete.

 

Major General (Retd) Abhay Krishna, the then commanding officer of the Rajputana Rifles, said a team of army officers, who identified the talent of Neeraj in the year 2016, had to visit his home to convince his parents to let him join the army under the sports quota.

 

"In January 2016, the athletic sports coach of the Raj Rif had first met Neeraj at Patiala. At that time, his javelin throw was at around 80 meters. Consequent to my directions, the sports officer visited Neeraj's village in March 2016 to meet him and his parents. After long persuasion, they convinced Neeraj to join RAJ RIF as his future would be secure in the Indian Army. Neeraj and his family consented to this,” Maj Gen (Retd) Krishna said.

 

There are two procedures followed in the Army, for preparing sportsmen of excellence. The first one is to identify raw talent among the recruits/soldiers and the second is to identify talent from the civil fields for enrollment under the sports quota. RAJ RIF has produced many sportsmen of excellence including several Olympians, he said.

 

“Once Neeraj joined RAJ RIF Brigadier Adish Yadav along with a team of athletic coach Subedar Sunil and Subedar Raj Kumar went to his family and spent the entire day with the family and complimented the family for giving their full support and care to Neeraj for him to achieve his aim,” he said.

 

“We were convinced that one day he would surely bring some glory for the country at the international level. Subsequently, the Indian Army has constantly remained in touch with the Athletic Federation and SAI for Neeraj's training,” he added.

 

New is originally taken from: https://www.indiatoday.in/sports/other-sports/story/army-officers-had-to-persuade-neeraj-chopra-s-family-to-let-him-join-rajputana-rifles-under-sports-quota-1851581-2021-09-10