August 13, 2019
In #MyTake this week, we have Ebin Joseph, Kerala’s wheelchair Rugby
team captain. 25 year old Joseph, who is also a wheelchair basketball player
and part of the Indian team, has won many championships.
I have always been passionate about sports since childhood. In spite of
having an orthopaedic disability since birth, I have always been
active in athletics and badminton. I hail from Kottayam, a small town in
Kerala, and I have a lot of support from my parents and siblings to pursue my
dreams. I completed my class 12 and soon realised that sports was my true
calling. I decided to take it up full time.
Cricket is what always interested me. As a child, I used to play it with my
friends and brothers.
My tryst with professional sports started in the year 2010. I attended a
selection event at Kochi under the guidance of Father Mathew. I was noticed
there and got selected to Kerala’s wheelchair basketball team. Gradually, I
became part of the national team, and it has been four years now since I’am
playing for India.
Recently, we formed a state team for Kerala in wheelchair Rugby. For the
national championship that was held last month, we won the first place. As a
team, I had participated in the Wheelchair Basketball Asian
Championship 2018 in which we won a Bronze for India.
Para sports in general does not have any support from the government,
regardless of what state you come from. Due to this, most of us are unable to
take our game to the next level or pursue our dreams. In fact, this is very
demotivating and we are coming down.
In Kerala, this is even worse. When we recently attended the national
championship for wheelchair rugby, we noticed many people from other states
getting ample support from government. But we are left to figure out things
on our own. Paying for travel expenses, accommodation, food and sports
equipment is a huge task for us since most of us are not even earning.
“We need a lot of time to practice wheelchair sports in order to be able to
represent our state or country at various platforms. Most of us are unable to
work because we spend a lot of time on sports. I’am lucky to have a
supportive family who stands with me through thick and thin. They help me
financially too. But what about many others? They all have dreams and
aspirations. But the government has to step in to support us”.
I drive my own car. So every week, I travel from Kottayam to Kochi, which is
at least two hours drive, in order to practice sports at Rajagiri. There are
no options in my home town.
Every month, I travel twice to New Delhi to practice wheelchair rugby. Being
a wheelchair user, it is not an easy task since trains are
inaccessible. It takes five days to travel to and back, but I do
that purely for my love for sports. I leave everything and go behind it
because this is my passion.
I often wonder why para sports is always side-lined. We get medals and still
no one notices us. If other players without disabilities go for sports
events, everyone gives that so much of importance. There are many talented
para sports people out there, but they are unable to come due to this
insensitive attitude towards para sports.
If the Kerala football team wins a match, they are praised, given money and
even provided jobs. What about us? In fact, we take more hardships to attend
sports events because all of us are disabled. There were days when I have
travelled in general quota in trains to get to New Delhi. That is the kind of
commitment that we do, and we are left unnoticed.
Recently, the Indian disability cricket team has been launched
and I’am looking forward to become a part of it. They have invited me for the
camp and I’am gearing up to attend that at New Delhi.
I believe that if we love something, we have to go behind it. There will be
many roadblocks. But chasing your dreams and achieving them is truly a
beautiful feeling.
Contact Ebin Joseph at +91 90610-17888.
Source: https://newzhook.com/story/govt-apathy-towards-para-sports-demotivates-us-mytake-by-ebin-joseph
