Summary
The young shuttler shared her inspiring journey with students
She also played an exhibition match at the newly built sports complex of the Institute
Badminton player Tansim Mir, who recently secured the world no. 1 rank in the under-19 category for girls, visited Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Gandhinagar and shared the story of her journey from a small town to the global sporting arena in an interaction with students and faculty members of the institute recently.
A special interactive event ‘A Day with a Champion’ was organised by the sports council of IIT Gandhinagar on May 2. It provided a platform for students to hear from a sporting hero and learn about the various challenges that she overcame on her way to international badminton tournaments.
The event began with a tour of the newly constructed sports complex of the institute followed by a lively Q&A session with Tasnim, wherein she shared her journey, experiences, and challenges that led her to attain the coveted rank. Tasnim, who hails from Mehsana, Gujarat, created history after becoming the first Indian to claim world no 1 ranking in the under-19 girls’ singles badminton category as declared by the Badminton World Federation in January 2022.
She started playing badminton at the age of seven under the guidance of her father, Irfan Mir, who is a badminton coach. So far, Tasnim has won eight international titles, 22 national titles, and 40 state titles. She is also the only female player who has won the Asian Junior Championship twice.
“Apart from all the strategies and practise, ultimately, the game examines your mental strength. If you are not strong mentally, you cannot play a single stroke the way you want to play. Failures are part of the game. Just focus on giving your best and work on the weak aspects to improve yourself after a failure,” said the shuttler.
She also recalled her experiences of meeting and practising with Indian badminton legends Saina Nehwal and P V Sindhu.
Tasnim also played an exhibition match with one of the winners of the intra-college Badminton Super League-2022 at the newly built sports complex of the Institute. Sharing his experience of playing with the champion, Gaurav Kumar Rawat, a first-year BTech student at IIT Gandhinagar, said, “It was a once-in-a-lifetime moment for me to play a game with the current U-19 girls’ singles world champion. I was very excited and nervous at the same time. I would like to thank IIT Gandhinagar for the golden opportunity.”
The entire event received an enthusiastic response from the students and community as they could interact and click selfies with her, and watch Tasnim live in action.
Last updated on 04 May 2022
