New Delhi: It was widely known as the ‘vault of death’ but Dipa Karmakar made the dangerous Produnova vault a household name in India. Fans in the country may not have known much about gymnastics or the intricacies of the vault but they were glued to their television screens when a young girl from Tripura finished fourth at the Rio Olympics in 2016 with a score of 15.966, just 0.15 points behind the bronze winner.
Karmakar, who was the first Indian female gymanst to qualify for the Olympics, came agonisingly close to a medal in a sport that had no pedigree in India. That alone made her a special existence in India’s sporting firmament.
Even to think of an Indian gymnast executing the dangerous Produnova vault at the Olympics was scarcely believable. But that night in Rio, Dipa dazzled with power, poise, grace and a fearless streak. She took a front handspring off the vault, followed by two and a half somersaults, and almost nailed one of the toughest routines in gymnastics that only four other gymnasts in the world before her had dared to attempt.
That was where her Olympic dream unfortunately ended as injuries battered her body and kept her from competition after competition. She kept pushing herself all these years in the hopes of making a dream comeback but the body told her it was time to bid farewell to the sport.
On Monday, Dipa took the call and drew curtains on a career that ignited many-a-dream. A gold medal at the Asian Championships in Tashkent in May this year was her last international tournament, and the one which gave her the signal that it was time to bid goodbye.
Dipa will have the solace that she is leaving on a high. At 31, she might not have any fight left in her but she has truly been a trailblazer for Indian sport.
“My last victory was the Asian Gymnastics Championships in Tashkent which was a turning point for me because by that time I realised that I cannot push my body anymore. Sometimes our body tells us that it is time to take rest but heart doesn’t accept it,” Dipa said in an emotional post while announcing her retirement.
“I remember the five-year-old Dipa who was told that you can never become a gymnast because of my flat feet. Today, when I look back at my achievements, I feel proud of myself. To represent India at the world stage and to win medals, and the most special moment was to perform the Produnova vault at the Rio Olympics, it was the most memorable moment of my career. I am proud and happy that I had the courage to dream,” she said.
“After a lot of thinking I have decided to retire from Gymnastics. This decision was not easy for me but I feel this is the right time. Gymnastics is a very important part of my life and I am grateful for every moment — the highs, the lows and everything in between.”
Facilities at the Vivekananda Byamagar — the club where she trained in Agartala were the bare minimum. Be it the apparatus, landing area or equipment in gymnasium, nothing was top class, but that only strengthened Dipa’s resolve.
From the age of six, she single-mindedly pursued the goal of representing India at the global stage. She was part of the Indian team at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi and four years later in Glasgow, she won a bronze — the first Indian female gymnast to win a medal at CWG.
Soon the gymnastics world took note of this girl from India performing the ‘vault of death– the Produnova’ which became her signature routine. She won a bronze at the Asian Championships in 2015 and came fifth at the World Championships that year.
Then came the Rio Olympics where she became the first Indian gymnast to qualify for the final. In the women’s vault final, Dipa finish behind Giulia Stengruber (15.216 ) of Switzerland, who won the bronze but she returned home to a rousing welcome.
An ACL surgery next year came as a big blow as she took a long time to recover. She tried to make several comebacks but injuries kept coming. This year, she won the national title and competed in international events desperately looking to qualify for the Paris Olympics but it was too late in the day.
“I want to thank my coach Bisheshwar Nandi and Soma (Nandi) mam who guided me for 25 years and both of them were my biggest strength. I thank my parents who have always stood by me during the good and bad days.”
“My connection with gymnastics will never be over. I want to give back to the sport, maybe as a mentor, or coach or just by supporting girls like me. I thank everyone for my support.”
