Sabina pedals her way to three medals in Khelo India Youth Games 2025

New Delhi [India], May 10 : Sabina Kumari started out on a modest track in Jharkhand's Chatra district, far from the glitz of an indoor velodrome. The 18-year-old, daughter of a daily-wage worker and a housewife, has bagged three medals in cycling in her debut participation at the Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG) in Patna, Bihar.

Sabina won double gold in the girls' Keirin and Team Sprint events, respectively, as well as a bronze in the 200m Sprint.

"This was my first Khelo India Youth Games, and I'm very happy with my performance and the three medals. Among them, the individual Keirin was my best," said the visibly elated National Centre of Excellence trainee as quoted from SAI Media.

Sabina's story is one of quiet determination, focus and hard work, and she said, "I have always been focused and have worked hard. There are many girls in rural places who want to do something in life but don't find the opportunity. I want to tell them - working hard. Chase what you want, whether it's in sports or anything else."

Sabina's entry into sports was accidental and said, "I didn't even know about sports then. My father filled out a form in 2017 under the Central Coalfields Ltd programme of the Jharkhand Government. He just wanted me to do well in life in terms of survival and education. That small act changed my life."

She was just 12 years old when she took to Cycling at the Jharkhand State Sports Promotion Society (JSPS) Academy in Ranchi. Sabina soon came under the wings of cycling coach Ram Kapoor Bhatt. Impressed by her instincts and agility, Ram Kapoor Bhatt, a multiple medalist in cycling at the 2011 National Games, encouraged Sabina to try out sprint.

"I was 13 in 2018 when I started training under Ram sir, and I never looked back. By 2021, her steady improvement led to a breakthrough a gold and bronze at her first national championship in Jaipur. "That was when I started believing that I could go far," Sabina said.

With her mother managing home and her father working daily-wage jobs to make ends meet, the thought of pursuing a sporting career seemed improbable. But with continuous support from Khelo India Scheme, Sabina has found an avenue to express herself and added, "The Khelo India Scheme is the reason I am what I am today."

In 2024, she won her first international medal as part of the Indian team that claimed sprint gold at the Asian Championships in Delhi. Sabina is also part of the SAI National Centre of Excellence (NCOE) IG Stadium, training under French cycling legend Kevin Sireau and further honing her technical edge and said, "He is a very good guide. My aim now is to represent India at the Olympics."

Now completing her 12th-standard studies via self-learning, Sabina balances academics with intense training. She remains grateful of her roots and coach Ram Bhatt.

"There's been so much development in cycling in Jharkhand. Around 25-30 kids are training under Ram Sir now. He wants all of us to go forward. I am so grateful to have found him at the right time," she said.

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