As the school bell heralds the start of morning assembly, students start assembling at the ground. Some of them with bright and shiny faces, all geared up for the day, others still rubbing their eyes, reminiscing the feel of the cosy bed they had to reluctantly get out of to reach school on time. Among them is a 14-year-old girl, for whom the morning began hours ago. While some of her peers were still enjoying the last few precious hours of sweet slumber, Mridhini Ravishankar of Grade 9 was already on the field, training hard. She is on the track at 5:30 everyday – six days a week. And she is all set to claim her destiny. 

Years ago, when she was all of 6, and living in the US, her parents would fondly watch her playing with her younger brother. The siblings would engage in a lot of different games inside the house, but one of them would recur quite often – an indoor race. While Mridhini would outrun her brother quite often, what caught her parents’ eyes was the stability and command she displayed while running on the carpeted floor of their living room. Spotting the natural potential of their daughter, her parents – Ravishankar Ramanathan and Vardhini Ravishankar – decided to find a coach to train her in athletics. Once the family relocated to India, her parents lost no time in searching for a competent coach for her, who would make sure that the natural potential of their daughter is honed and nurtured. 

While the search for a coach was underway, Mridhini participated in the 100 metres (Under-10 category) race of the Sports For All (SFA) championship in Hyderabad. That was the first time she brought home a gold medal. Seeing how this petite girl was absolutely at home on the tracks, her coaches Mr. Srinivas and Mr. Shiva, lost no time in grooming her. That was back in 2018. Their guidance and support have been a perpetual source of inspiration for Mridhini ever since. 

Mridhini went on to participate in a number of athletic meets, outshining her peers in all of them. Most recently, she stood first in the Ranga Reddy District trials in the Under-16 category clocking 7:40 (mm:ss) to earn that place. This got her to her very first national level trials at Guntur where she represented the South Zone. Mridhini stood 4th in her very first nationals meet, clocking a personal best of 7:03:17 (mm:ss:ms) – a huge leap from her previous performance.

With the medals and certificates pouring in, her determination soared. She trains 6 days a week for four hours; two hours in the morning, usually from 5:30 am to 7:30 am and two hours in the evening, from 4:30 pm to 6:30 pm. She manages all this alongside her regular school schedule and her commitment to excel in academics. When asked whether the rigorous schedule tires her out, she replies with her omnipresent smile, “Athletics is my life. I’d do anything for it”. Her parents and coaches are obviously a humongous source of support for her on her way to bigger and better achievements. But the strength, determination and dedication and commitment that the 14 year old demonstrates towards what she feels is her calling, definitely deserves a huge applause.