National Games 2023: Indian army windsurfer Eabad Ali wins gold in RS:X category

Published at :November 9, 2023 at 1:23 AM

Modified at :January 14, 2024 at 1:01 AM

(Courtesy : National Games)

The Asian Games 2023 bronze medal winner spoke about how Indian army changed his life.

Asian Games 2023 bronze medal-winning windsurfer, Eabad Ali of the Services Sports Control Board (SSCB), continued his impressive form in the National Games 2023 in Goa by clinching the top spot in all 10 races in the RS:X category, securing the gold medal.

Scouted by his employer for Sailing in 2015, this Army man from Ayodhya is now focused on building on these results as he enters the crucial Olympic year with the aim of securing his place in Paris 2024.

Eabad never really dreamt of becoming a champion sailor. In fact, he was a keen runner in his youth and aspired to represent his country in athletics. It was only after joining the army in 2013 that his fortunes took a different turn.

In 2015, Eabad was scouted by the Indian Army’s Olympic program named “Army Achievement,” which conducts selection trials in Mumbai for jawans from all over India. Athletes who make the cut under this program receive specialized year-round training for their sport and are sponsored to represent India in international competitions.

Eabad was handpicked by his mentor, Lt. Col. Ashutosh Tripathi, to pursue sailing due to his physical prowess. He remains grateful to the Indian Army for their support and for providing him with a platform to achieve his dreams.

The sport of sailing received a significant boost due to the Indian Services’ (Army and Navy) Olympic program, as the high financial cost of training and equipment makes the sport unaffordable for many in India. To even begin in the sport, a basic coaching boat costs over Rs. 20 lakhs.

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“Usually in sailing, you either have to be associated with an organization willing to support you, or you have to be very affluent to afford to play the sport. My family did not have the financial means for me to get into this. It’s only because the army has supported me all the way that I’m here.

“I am delighted to win medals for my country and secure the National Games gold medal for the Army (Services) today. This gives me a lot of satisfaction, knowing that it will make many of my seniors happy,” said the 29-year-old, who also received an out-of-turn promotion and several rewards for his Asian Games 2023 medal.

Windsurfers rely on their skill in judging and harnessing the wind to win a race. What is less known is the hard work they put into daily training to meet the physical demands of competitive sailing.

Eabad has been competing in the RS:X discipline since 2016, which requires the sailor to combine upper body strength with a balance maintained by their lower body. Strength in the forearms and shoulders is required to manipulate and adjust the sail in response to the gusts of wind, while the sailor uses a daggerboard to navigate the shifting waves of water.

“Sailing has various disciplines, and the RS:X is, in my opinion, the most demanding one, as each race takes between 25-45 minutes to finish. Sometimes, in low winds, you have to manually pump (adjusting the sail in response to the wind and waves), and your heart rate is consistently above 175. To prepare for competition, I train daily by running and rowing for two hours, followed by five hours of practice in the water,” Eabad said about his training regimen.

Following a bronze medal in the Abu Dhabi Asian Championships in 2022 and the Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou, Eabad is now determined to realize his dream of competing in the Olympics in 2024.

Since RS:X will no longer be an Olympic discipline from 2024 onwards, he will transition to the new IQ foil discipline, as many RS:X competitors are doing.

Eabad’s goal now is to leave a legacy and inspire more young children to take up the sport, with the hope of seeing India produce an Olympic medal-winning sailor in his lifetime.