This is how Bhavani Devi became the first Indian fencer ever to qualify for Olympics!

Fencing had become only popular in the 19th century and was further introduced in the Olympics in late 80's. However, it was limited to only men. In 1924, the women entered the competition. In all of this, the sport is not popular in India and there are possibilities that several people do not even know about it.

 

In such circumstances, it is totally different story for a woman to enter into such a sport and make her goal to reach the Olympics. Such sportsperson is Chadalavada Anandha Sundhararamana Bhavani Devi or CA Bhavani Devi, who scripted history to become the first Indian fencer to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics.

 

 

This qualification came after she booked a berth in the World Cup in Budapest, Hungary after the hosts lost in the quarterfinals, which allowed South Korea to progress to the semi-final. The 27-year-old qualified through the Adjusted Official Ranking (AOR) Method.

 

 

Hailing from Chennai, she was born on August 27, 1993, to an encouraging homemaker mother and a father who was a temple priest. She is the youngest of four children from a middle-class family. Besides, Devi started her sports career in 2003 and the following year was introduced to fencing at school. Devi hadn’t heard of the sport until it was introduced in her school in Chennai when she was 9, but her individual endeavour and blazing ambition made her qualify for one of the biggest sporting events in the world.

 

She enrolled in the Sports Authority of India (SAI) Centre in Thalassery, Kerala, and at the age of 14, appeared in her first international tournament in Turkey. Devi soon paved her way up from junior to a professional category to become an eight-time national champion.

 

In her sports career, she won the Bronze medal at the 2009 CommonWealth Championship in Malaysia and a similar feat at the 2010 International Open, in Thailand. Devi won the gold in the Senior Commonwealth Fencing championship 2018, in Canberra, Australia. In the process, she became the first Indian to win a gold medal in the Commonwealth championship.

 

The same year, she lost miserably in the initial competitions, but her persistence finally paid off when she bagged the gold in the sabre event at the 2018 Women’s World Cup satellite tournament in Reykjavik, Iceland. Also, the country’s first international gold medal in the sport.

 

 

Crediting all the success towards her parents, Bhavani Devi, whose late father was a priest and their mother is a homemaker, is grateful for the support she has received from her parents at every step. “Only because of my parents, I was able to push myself harder to overcome difficulties,” she said on Wednesday at a media interaction facilitated by the Sports Authority of India.

“My mother always encouraged me. She would tell me ‘If today is not good, tomorrow will be better. If you give 100 per cent, you will definitely get the result.’ Even from her hospital bed when she was recovering from Covid-19, she told me to focus on my dream and play in the Budapest World Cup rather than return home to be with her,” Bhavani Devi said.

 

Also Read: Back with a bang, Neeraj Chopra could be the first Indian to win an Olympic medal in athletics!

 

She said voices had dissuaded her from continuing with Fencing when Olympic qualification seemed a distant dream, but her parents encouraged her to carry on, “When my ranking wasn’t close to the qualification, people used to ask why is she investing so much time in sport. She’s a woman, she could get education and think of getting some job. I didn’t get encouragement from outside, my mother and father told me to not worry.” 

 

Given the prevailing Covid-19 situation and with tournaments likely to get cancelled, Bhavani Devi is expecting to continue training in Italy before departing for the Olympic Games from there. Inducted into the Target Olympic Podium Scheme in April, she is now attending a three-week camp in May where she is be training with the Italian National team.  

 

Also Read: #RoadToTokyoOlympics: The 'BACKHAND' magic that makes Manika Batra special!

 

It should be noted such a feat was achieved even after the global lockdown. She is currently ranked 45 in the world among women sabre fencers. This inspires many more women to explore this underrated sport in India. Now, with this feat, India can hope for a medal in fencing, too!