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Pint-sized speed machine

This long-distance winner from Andhra Pradesh is burning the race track

For Lavanya Veerla, size hardly matters. The diminutive lass has proved that small steps can accomplish great feats.

At the recent Federation Cup National junior girls (under-20) cross-country championship in Nashik, she was amongst the shortest in the starting line. But she sprinted ahead, leaving taller rivals in her wake. All across the three hills that the runners had to traverse, she kept at it with no sign of letting up. Even in the concluding leg, a 400-metre stadium lap, she continued to steam ahead. When Lavanya completed the six km course, clocking 22 minutes and 47 seconds, she was a full five seconds ahead of the second placed Sangeeta Yadav of UP. Trained by India's one-time fastest man, Rami Reddy, Lavanya began as a quarter and half-miler but switched to long distance on the advice of her first coach, Srihari. She would be outpaced by taller runners in Sprints. She graduated to 5000 metres, but the cross country was her first love.

She struck silver at last year's junior National athletics meet in Chennai in the 3000 metres. She was included in the Indian camp at Shilaroo, near Shimla, where the National squad was training for the junior Asian championships in Malaysia.

That Nashik triumph came after much toil. For a couple of years, her day began at 5 a.m. She had to reach the Railway Recreation Club (RRC) grounds by 6.30 a.m. from her Saidabad home. The training took two and a half hours, with an identical stint in the evening. Sundays brought a break from training and welcome relief in the form of movies her uncle took her to. She averaged 90 km a week, training in sand at Indira Park, supplemented by games of basketball and handball. The excessive training took its toll too as a persistent pain needed surgery last September. Her ankle troubled her too.

Her father, V. Raghu, faithfully takes her to and from practice. Lavanya's role models are P. T. Usha and Marion Jones. Her sights are now trained on the Asian Games in Doha next year, although she has some way to go to meet qualifying timings.

A. JOSEPH ANTONY

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