Mud Halts Training at Varanasi Akhara That Produced Asian

The Varanasi akhara that helped produce Asian Kurash medallist Preeti Patel is effectively out of action after monsoon rain turned its practice surface into mud. At Sanjoi, athletes who have won national and international medals say training stops for days whenever the open earthen pit becomes waterlogged.

The contrast is sharp. Preeti won bronze at the Asian Championship in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, held from June 11 to 15. She and her sisters have also delivered strong national results: Preeti and Prachi Patel won gold at the 69th National Championship in Saharanpur, while younger sister Shashi earned silver. Yet their regular training base lacks competition mats, a covered shed and a changing room for women.

Coach Ajit Pal has made a modest first request. Even if regulation mats cannot be provided immediately, a tin shed would allow the ground to remain usable more consistently. Athletes say they have raised the condition of the akhara with public representatives and received assurances, but no visible improvement has followed.

Kurash is contested on mats, not in mud. Earthen training can build strength and has a long place in local wrestling culture, but an athlete preparing for an international mat sport also needs to practise movement, balance and falling on the surface used in competition. Switching only at the event changes grip, speed and confidence. Preeti has said that regular mat practice could help convert a bronze into gold.

The calendar makes lost days costly. State, national and international competitions can arrive every few months. A week without training is not an abstract inconvenience when weight management, conditioning and technical repetition are planned daily. The burden falls hardest on athletes who cannot pay for a private facility or travel across the city each session.

The absence of a women’s changing room is more than an amenity gap. It affects privacy, attendance and whether younger girls are comfortable joining. Varanasi cannot claim to support women in sport while asking medal-winning athletes to improvise basic dignity around an open akhara.

A practical intervention does not require a mega-project. The district sports administration could first inspect drainage, provide a weatherproof training cover, install safe lighting and arrange shared mats. A basic maintenance responsibility should be assigned so that equipment does not disappear or deteriorate after one season. Athletes and the coach should be included in the layout because they understand how the space is actually used.

The names coming out of Sanjoi show that talent is not the missing resource. Preeti, Prachi, Shashi and fellow national-level athletes such as Shivkumar Pal, Ayush Anmol, Gautam Rai and Shubham Verma have already supplied the evidence. The city now has to decide whether their success is something to applaud from a stage or infrastructure to build upon.

For the moment, the monsoon has won the practice bout. A roof and mats could change that long before the next medal ceremony.