Septuagenarian excels in sports

A septuagenarian maidservant is now a celebrity in the small town of Kavali. Anyone who visits Vengalrao Nagar in the town would certainly hear the name of Ramasubbulu who excels in veteran sports.

A great zeal, sincerity in efforts, and a passion for attempting the events are her forte. Manikala Ramasubbamma has already bagged tens of medals in walking, running, shot put and javelin throw. Educated only up to 4thstandard,” she says.

“Working hard has been a blessing for me from my childhood. I started attending events just because of a suggestion from a woman whom I met in a train accidentally between Nellore and Bitragunta which changed the course of my life. Now I am very interested to participate in any event,” says Ramasubbamma.

She says her husband, Malakondaiah. is an aged person who retired as a head cook from the local degree college 20 years ago and has been ailing with many age-related diseases. But that doesn’t stop her from attending events across the country.

She has two children a daughter and a son who are now teachers in government schools. She teaches her grandsons and granddaughters how to run and jump.

“I went to my daughter’s house in Nellore and was back to my place. Rajeswari from Bitragunta, who was acquainted with the veteran sports, informed me about the sports and the enjoyment. Koteswaramma from Nellore also helped me to participate in many events subsequently,” said Ramasubbamma.

She has participated in events held at Nellore, S Kota (Visakhapatnam), Nasik, Mangalore and many other places and bagged 8 gold medals without any coaching. She has won many awards in the national events organised by the Masters Athletics Federation of India (MAFI).

“I could not participate in many events mainly due to language problem. Even though I was present there, I failed to participate. I didn’t understand the announcements (language). So, I had to adjust with second or third prizes sometimes. For me 3,000-5,000 meter running races are also not a big deal. Even now, I can bag the medals,” says Ramasubbamma confidently.

Even though her son and daughter are employed, she is not willing to depend on them and prefers to be a maidservant off-field. She wanted to attend Thailand Masters Athletics Championships (held between March 9 and 11) on her own.

However, as no one had backed her even though she was ready to bear expenses. It is sad that no support has been extended by the State government or any other agency for her to scale greater heights in the veteran sports.