Nikhilesh Tabane is a budding roller-skater who wants to put India on the skating world map. He talks to Amit Chaudhary
The excitement in his voice is palpable. After all, he is giving his first ever interview. In eagerness, he reveals more than what is asked for. For those who play popular sports like cricket, an interview is a regular affair but for a young boy who competes in a sport which is not even recognised by the International Olympic Association (IOC), it is a big occasion. So, he doesn’t want you to miss anything.
“I have clocked 25.82sec in 300m (category) during the national speed skating championship in Virar last year,” this is what Nikhilesh Tabane, 22-year-old roller skater from Nagpur, first tells you about himself.
In India’s cricket-dominated sporting universe, he is an unknown entity. But in the country’s small roller-skating community, he is the apple of everyone’s eye.
He recently became the first senior Indian roller skater to reach the quarterfinal of World Roller Skating Championship in Belgium. In fact, he has been the first one on couple of other occasions as well. For instance, he was the first one to break the 28-second barrier in India, then he went on to break the 27-second barrier and followed it up with the 26-second mark, and he now dreams of achieving another first by winning a world championship medal.
“Currently, I am clocking 25.82sec but if I want to reach the Worlds finals I’ll have to clock 24.80sec. That means I need to cover that one second in one year. It is difficult but I’ll do it,” a confident Tabane says.
But before that he has his sights set on next year’s Asian Games as he had missed the previous edition (in 2010) because of a controversial decision by the Roller Skating Federation of India (RSFI) in which he was banned for two years. That is past now. Currently, he is both the national champion and a national record holder.
“On my comeback, I won three gold medals in 300, 500 and 1,000m and created a national record. Clocking 25.82 (national record) was special because in India it is more difficult to record such a timing. You can do that on foreign tracks but here the tracks are not that favourable,” he says.
Tabane, the son of a businessman, had his first brush with roller skating at the age of 5½ years when he was watching Salman Khan starrer Patthar Ke Phool. The song, dekhte he tumse pyar hua, in which the hero was trying to impress the heroine with his skating skills mirrored what Tabane felt at that moment — a deep love for skating. Interestingly, the movie was released the same year (1991) Tabane was born.
“I found it very stylish and different from other sports which are quite common,” he says.
But other sports are more rewarding.
“It’s my passion. I love skating. It gives me real peace. I feel happy when I am skating. And doing things solely for the purpose of making a fruitful career is not that important. What is important is that you do things that give you happiness,” Tabane, who completed his engineering earlier this year, adds.
Happiness comes at a cost. As skating isn’t an Olympic discipline and hence doesn’t get financial assistance from the Government, players have to fund their training, trips and equipment.
Contrary to common perception that skating is an inexpensive sport as all you need is a pair of skates, it can actually make holes in your pocket.
“I have recently ordered a pair of custom-made shoes for around Rs 1.20 lakh. They took the mould of my feet and will make the shoes according to that. I always wanted to buy it but there was this financial problem.
“Besides the shoes, another Rs 30,000 will go for the frame (lower part of the shoe), then the wheels will cost around Rs 10,000 and the bearings will cost around Rs 25,000. So approximately, the total comes around to Rs 2 lakh. Then the helmet is for around Rs 10,000. The shoes that I am using now are for only Rs 25,000 but that’s not a meager amount either,” Tabane explains.
Fortunately, Tabane’s record-setting run last year earned him a sponsor — Ameya Classic Club, Mumbai. For the past one year, he has been training at the club’s newly built skating rink, which he says is the best in the country.
He believes with proper training, guidance and exposure, India can be a leading force in the skating world.
“If Indians start participating in more international tournaments we can definitely win medals. We lack experience and direction. All the skaters are ready to work hard but they don’t know what and how to go about it,” he signs off.