Assam weightlifter, jobless amid COVID, prepares for nat'l championship in thatch hut gym

JORHAT: For Madhusmita Baruah, a national-level weight lifter hailing from Assam, the ongoing lockdown clamped to contain COVID-19 has been fraught with challenges.

Baruah, who hails from Naksari Suling village in Mariani, is now training for an upcoming national championship in Punjab's Patiala on August 9. However, the decorated athlete's preparations have been hampered by the ongoing lockdown as she has not been able to avail of a professional gym. Moreover, due to a crunch of funds, she has been unable to maintain a proper diet.

Baruah has now turned a room of her bamboo thatch house into a makeshift gym where she does her basic exercises. However, gym equipment is quite expensive and she has only been able to gather a few equipments with her meager income which cannot help her overcome the cut-throat competition.

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Even before the lockdown, Baruah was hardly well off. She was working as a salesgirl in the neighbouring Jorhat town where she barely made enough to foot her bills. After lockdown, however, even that has been lost.

"In disciplines like weight-lifting and body-building, a proper diet is a must to compete at the highest levels. Without it, there is not much point to it," she said.

Baruah's district Jorhat has been put under complete lockdown due to spiraling COVID-19 cases, with a curfew around the clock.

She told the media that her preparations have taken a severe setback due to the lockdown as she is now facing a crunch of funds. In the meantime, she has urged the government to arrange a job for her as her family is not too well off.

"My father is a farmer which is why we are facing an economic crunch. A government job would be most welcome at this point as we are suffering a lot. I would also be indebted if the government arrannges a gym for me," she said.

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