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Young World
An all out athlete
ANASUYA MENON
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Her day begins at five in the morning, with jogging.
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PHOTO: M. PERIASAMY
Quietly confident: Shreenika
t is fun to be in athletics,” Shreenika Srihari says. Forming her words carefully as she speaks, Shreenika does not come across as a typical athlete. She is soft-spoken and not impatient like most children her age who have an inclination for athletics. But once on the race track, she transforms into an energetic athlete, almost always winning the race with the ease of an experienced performer.
A Std. VI student of Chinmaya International Residential School, Siruvani, Shreenika is the individual champion at the sub-junior (girls) athletics at the Annual Athletic Khel Mela held recently at the school.
She bagged the first place in 100 m sprint, 60 m hurdles, high jump, 400 m relay (girls), and 400 m mixed relay. She came second in discuss and cycling too. “I was always interested in sports, but this is the first time I got an opportunity to display my talent,” Shreenika says.
She has also taken part in a few inter-school CBSE athletic meets and emerged the winner in various athletic events. Having studied in a school in the city, she felt she did not get enough opportunity to nurture her interest in sports. Her parents too, recognising her interest in athletics, shifted her to Chinmaya Residential School, where students are given a lot of opportunities to develop their talents in extra-curricular activities.
All- rounder
An all-rounder in the true-sense of the expression, Shreenika has dabbled in painting, music, dance, badminton and table tennis. She is classically trained in dance and says she would love to continue her interest in dance. A normal day begins at 5 a.m., the time for jogging. Followed by sports practice and then badminton and athletics coaching. All this does not take away time for academics. “Academics are indeed important and I am concentrating on it apart from my sports.
With encouragement from school and my parents, I am able to take my interests forward,” she adds.“Athletics and sports play an important role in personality development. Shreenika has become more confident of her abilities,” says Srihari Ratnam, Shreenika’s father.
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