18 Under 18 Winner Nikum Gyamar joins training camp for India Under-20 Football team

When Nikum Gyamar had his first tryst with football at eight, he wouldn’t have dreamt of playing for the country a few years later. The Edugraph 18 Under 18 Award winner has been selected for the Indian Under-20 football training camp, taking him closer to the impossible dream.

The training camp is being held In Bhubaneswar, Odisha, to help young footballers perfect their game. Nikum and other participants of the training camp will play the selection matches for the 2022 SAFF (South Asian Football Federation) U-20 Championship from July 25 to August 5 and the AFC (Asian Football Federation) U-20 Asian Cup Qualifiers in September 2022 in Iraq.

The boy from Arunachal Pradesh was practising in his home town Naharlagun when he got picked for the camp. “I was called by the All India Football Federation for training in an Under-20 Football camp. I didn’t know the camp was going to be held this month. I was practising at my home town in Naharlagun, Arunachal Pradesh. They liked my previous tournament performances and called me,” Nikum said.

The 17-year-old has earlier played in prestigious tournaments like the I-League in 2021, representing Rajasthan United FC, and the Under-18 BC Roy Trophy in 2019, where he represented his state team Arunachal Pradesh.

“It’s a great thing for me to get a chance in the selections. Not everyone gets a chance to play for their country. So, I’ll try my best to get selected,” said the footballer who is currently training in Bhubaneswar.

The Lionel Messi fan considers football to be his first love. His craft has made him focused, disciplined and a thorough professional, he feels.

“I had been at my home in Naharlagun, Arunachal Pradesh, for the past few months and was practising football at a park nearby. Now that I am at the training camp, my immediate focus is to get selected for the Under-20 India team,” Nikum said.