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Lone ranger Sahil Thakur skis on unchartered slopes
The 16-year-old is India's lone representative at the ongoing Winter Youth Olympics in South Korea
In the quaint mountain village of Solang, at an altitude of 2,500m near tourist hotspot Manali in Himachal Pradesh, life moves at a glacial pace. Winters are long and severe with the temperature frequently dipping below the freezing mark. The howling winds pierce the bones. Sahil Thakur loves this wilderness, for it offers him the ideal setting to hop on to a cable car and head for the lower Himalayas, at least 1,000m higher, where he straps his skis and hits the snow-covered mountain slopes.
For over six years now, this has been Sahil's daily ritual. What started as a fun activity has taken him to South Korea's Gangwon where he is India's lone representative at the ongoing winter Youth Olympics. When he skis down the slopes of Jeongseon High 1 Ski Resort next week, Sahil will become only the third Indian to compete in the winter Youth Games. Aanchal Thakur competed in Slalom and Giant Slalom alpine skiing events at the inaugural Winter Youth Olympics in Austria in 2012 and Saurabh participated in super-G, Giant Slalom, Slalom and combined events in 2016.
The 16-year-old has entered in Slalom and Giant Slalom events, scheduled for January 24 and 25 respectively. With over 1,900 athletes from 80 countries congregating for the global showpiece for youth, it can all get a bit daunting. More so when one is competing on borrowed boots and second-hand skis. For the Slalom event, Sahil will ride the skis passed on by coach Chuni Lal Thakur, and for his pet Giant Slalom, he will use the skis recently purchased from Arif Khan, who participated in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. The boots were borrowed from Sahil's cousin.
"It's an expensive sport and my family doesn't have the means to get me new equipment. But that's not a complaint. I am very happy to be here and will give my best," Sahil said from Gangwon. “The scale of the event is nothing like I have seen or experienced before. Being the only Indian competitor here will push me even more to give my best.”
Sahil has had a few practice runs and reckons the slopes are in great shape. "The slopes are really good, I enjoyed my practice sessions a lot," he said.
At his village, Sahil's father is dealing with a thin trickle of tourists and adrenaline junkies. The year-end rush is over and the village is back to its sonorous monotony. Devi Chand Thakur runs a small adventure activities business and also grows apples.
Nothing he earns, however, is enough to fuel his sons' dreams. His elder son Rahul (21) too is a budding skier but is yet to get any international exposure. "Rahul is a Khelo India gold medallist but there is no pathway for him. He is a really promising prospect," says the proud father.
In the early 1990s, Devi Chand too was an eager skier and even participated in a national championship. His elder brother, Devi Chand says, competed in multiple nationals.
"We had our limitations, but I don't want Sahil to meet the same fate. Unfortunately, there's not much I can do for my boys. I go completely out of business in the off-season. I then make do with my savings. Skiing is an expensive pursuit," he said.
A decent pair of ski boots cost upwards of ₹35,000 and Slalom skis between ₹60,000 - ₹1.2 lakh. The starting price for Giant Slalom skis is around ₹80,000 and the price can go up to ₹1,30,000.
"Children in our neighbourhood take up skiing very early and Sahil was no exception," said Devi Chand. However, it was not until a ropeway was built in Solang valley to attract potential skiers that Sahil really got into the sport.
"He started using the ropeway around 6-7 years back. The rides were free for kids, and he made the best use of the generosity. Once at the top, he would ski for hours on wooden skis. Some days he would make 30-35 trips up and down the slope. People would tell me about his talent and energy with amazement," Devi Chand said.
Success followed a few years later. He won bronze in Slalom at the inaugural Khelo India Winter Games in Gulmarg and gold in the national championships in Giant Slalom.
"I won medals in Auli, Manali and Gulmarg. That gave me a lot of belief," Sahil said. Last January, Sahil travelled to Gangwon with a bunch of young Indian hopefuls for a pre-Olympic event which also served as selection trials for the Youth Olympics. "Sahil was a cut above the rest. He impressed us with his easy technique and attitude," coach Thakur said.
A trip to Dubai followed last November where Sahil participated in the UAE FIS Alpine Ski Slalom races. Devi Chand used ₹2 lakh from his savings to fund the travel and stay for Sahil and himself. "We knew that's the only international quality practice he can get before the Olympics, so we decided to travel on our own," Devi Chand said.
This winter, with no snowfall in most ski destinations in India, all Sahil could focus on was strength and conditioning. "We are in the Olympics on the back of some dry training and a handful of practice runs here. But Sahil is confident of doing his best. That's the only target I have set for him," the coach said.
Back in sleepy Solang, Devi Chand's only lament is how to make sense of the technology. "I don't know how to watch Sahil's events. Can someone help me with technology?" he laughs.
