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| Human Interest | |
|---|---|
General Interest | |
| Hobbies | Listening to songs from old Hindi films, especially the famous Kishore Kumar number 'Zindagi ka Safar.' "It's got sentimental value, very similar to my life," she said. (archery.org, 19 Apr 2010). |
| Hero / Idol | Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar and Indian archer Limba Ram. (Indian Express, 03 May 2004, zeenews.com, 19 Apr 2010). |
| Awards and honours | In 2007 she became the first Indian woman to win gold at an archery world championship. (in.sports.yahoo.com, 03 Nov 2007). In 2006 she was awarded the Arjuna Award for archery. The award is presented by the Indian Government and recognises outstanding achievements in sport. She was the fist woman to win this award. (iloveindia.com, 19 Apr 2010) In 2004 she became the first Indian woman to qualify for the Olympic Games. (iloveindia.com, 19 Apr 2010) |
Further Personal Information | |
| Occupation | Public Servant |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Why this sport? | "It was love at first sight. We lived just opposite the famed Baranagar Archery Club [near Calcutta, India]." |
| Name of coach | Dhamendar Tiwary |
| Training Regime | She begins training at 6am daily and continues until 10pm with breaks throughout the day. |
| Coach from which country? | India |
General Interest | |
| Memorable sporting achievement | Winning the recurve event at the 2007 World Cup Final event in Dubai. (India Times, 25 Nov 2007) |
| Famous relatives | Rahul Banerjee, her younger brother, is also an archer. (The Hindu, 11 Oct 2005) The singer Shaan is her cousin. (zeenews.com, 19 Apr 2010) |
| Most influential person in career | Her parents. (Athlete, 30 Jun 2007) |
| Ambitions | To win an Olympic medal. (Athlete 30 Jun 2007) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| When and where did you begin this sport? | She started the sport in Kolkata in 1990. |
Further Personal Information | |
| Languages | Hindi |
| Residence | Kolkata, IND |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Club / Team | Baranagar Archery Club: Baranagar, IND |
| Handedness | Right |
International Debut | |
| Year | 1997 |
| Competing for | India |
| Tournament | Asian Championship |
| Location | Malaysia |
General Interest | |
| Other information | CONSISTENT TALENT IS IN THE FAMILY She and her younger brother, Rahul, were the overall men's and women's recurve champions at the third and final national Indian ranking tournament in 2005. She has won a gold, silver or bronze medal in every national meet between 1990 and 2005. (The Hindu 11 Oct 2005; Educationworld online, 01 Aug 2005). SPORTS DIVAZ Banerjee supports the Sports Divaz campaign, an initiative begun by dentist and aerobics expert Anuradha Namishivaya to raise the profile of women's sport in India. (hinduonnet.com, 19 Apr 2010). ON WINNING THE 2007 ARCHERY WORLD CUP IN DUBAI "“That is the biggest victory for me. The Koreans are always very strong. I didn’t feel very good at the start of the semi-final – my concentration was not good. But towards the end of that match I found my focus and that continued into the final. Perhaps I put too much pressure on myself in the semi-final but in the final I felt more relaxed,” (archery.org, 19 Apr 2010). ON HER SLUMP IN FORM AFTER WINNING THE WORLD CUP "This loss of form happens sometimes after reaching the peak…it’s not uncommon in sports…but it got highlighted because it occurred in an Olympic year. I could not find the reason why it happened to me….but I was determined to do well and go to Olympics…thank God I got my form back in time. " (zeenews.com, 19 Apr 2010). ON THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE SHAPED HER CAREER "It’s very difficult to name a single individual. Besides my parents, the Tata Archery Academy and Korean coach Lee Wang Woo have played a major role in shaping my career." (zeenews.com, 19 Apr 2010) ON HOW SHE GOT INVOLVED IN ARCHERY "Since Baranagar Archery Club is situated in front of my home, my parents used to send me there in the evenings so that I engaged in some kind of healthy exercise… To start with I, too, was not serious…but after I started winning medals at different levels, I started taking archery seriously." (zeenews.com, 19 Apr 2010). ON HER INITIAL DISLIKE FOR THE SPORT "It was very boring. I was shooting rubber-tipped arrows at some coloured circles all day. I just hated it." (india-today.com, 19 Apr 2010). ON GIVING UP CLASSICAL MUSIC TO PURSUE ARCHERY "I had been learning classical music from my childhood but it could not be continued due to archery in which I was doing well. I am happy with whatever I am doing at present." (zeenews.com, 19 Apr 2010) MENTAL STRENGTH IS AS IMPORTANT AS TECHNICAL STRENGTH "In today’s sports, mental aspects are as important as technical aspects…we have to coolly handle the pressure situation…another thing that is important in archery is concentration…I am also working on that." (zeenews.com, 19 Apr 2010) |