Vishwaraj Jadeja becomes the first Indian athlete to skate 100 km non-stop on the Frozen Sea of Sweden
Published: Publication date – 12:30, Tue – 12 22 April
New Delhi: The Indian skating athlete Vishwaraj Jadeja recently became the first Indian athlete to have ridden 100 kilometers on the Frozen Sea in Sweden, as part of the Sea Ice Classic, Luleå. It was the first time an Indian has tried and completed such an achievement. His finish time was 4 hours 53 minutes which was at the top of the time reports. Temperatures dropped to -5 degrees with occasional rain and snow. He aims to complete 200 km next year.
Vishwaraj has had a fantastic season where he qualified for the World Cup, which is a springboard to the Winter Olympics. Although he could only participate in one World Cup competition, he was 1/4 of a second from Olympic qualifying in the Mass Start race.
The Olympics require qualifying time and participation in three World Cup competitions. Unfortunately, Vishwaraj could not compete in the other two World Cups due to various logistical problems. “One time the visa did not arrive on time because the embassies are understaffed and thus overworked due to the pandemic. Another time a sponsor did not keep his promise and we could not reach a race,” he says. He highlights the fight for an athlete who competes in a sport that is not “famous” or “glamorous” like many others in India, he says with a smile, “For the past many years, official funds have not been released in time from relevant organizations, which hampers all planning during the competition season. With India lacking any proper winter sports infrastructure, the odds have always been against us anyway. “Some last races that were canceled due to the pandemic did not help either.” Long-distance skating is an elite sport and it has been part of the Winter Olympic Charter for almost 100 years. Elite because there are 14 gold medals to win, which is more than any other sport at the Winter Olympics.
Vishwaraj is the third generation of a sports family. His grandfather played hockey for Gujarat University. His aunt represented India in roller skating at the World Championships. So it is only natural that for him the hunt was the Olympics.
As previously mentioned, he has had a fantastic season this year.
– 1 national record of the 5 km fought for India (his 66th national record for India) – Qualified for the World Cups (mass start) – 2nd position at SVU’s annual club race (outdoors) (first Indian) – 2: a position at the Closing Marathon of the racket (outdoors) (first Indian) – 100 kilometers at the Frozen Swedish Ice Sea Classic. (The first Indian to try to do this) About his performance in the 100-kilometer race, he says “It would not be enough to just show up now. The” Indian “skater had to make an impact. And I’m proud we did just that! ” India does not have a proper winter sports infrastructure today. Nevertheless, India has had Winter Olympics. “I was not going to get that far but I did it with less than 10 percent of the resources required. I only imagine what could happen if we get even 10 percent more resources. I mean, it took Sachin Tendulkar 6 World Cups to win 1. “He concludes by saying:” Almost got it this time. But well, it almost does not matter. I’m from India so it’s only a matter of time before I get to the Olympics. ” This story is provided by PNN. ANI is not responsible in any way for the content of this article.