Three TT players from Gujarat chosen under Tops scheme of Ministry of Sports

Manush Shah from Vadodara eyes Olympic medal and train hard to achieve the dream

The Ministry of Sports of Government of India has implemented various schemes for the players of each sport so that they can improve their game and make India famous at the international level.

They have implemented the Target Olympic Podium Scheme ‘Tops’ in 2014 under the Mission Olympic Cell for more Indian athletes to participate in the Olympics to be held in 2024 and 2028 next year and win medals.

Under which the guidance of experienced nominated coaches should be provided including the right environment to make the athletes of 12 different sports played in the Olympics more competent in their sport and they can compete in the competition. As many as 256 players have been selected from 258 emerging junior players in 12 different games this year for the scheme.

All the selected players will get Rs 25,000 per month which they can use to improve the game including their sports coaching. Talking about the game of Table Tennis, 4 players have been selected under the ‘Tops’ out of which 3 are from Gujarat and 1 is from West Bengal.

Out of the three players from Gujarat, Harmeet Desai and Manav Thakkar are from Surat while Manush Shah is from Vadodara.

Manush Shah is an emerging left-handed TT player, who started playing table tennis in 2010, has won many medals in national competitions by representing Gujarat’s junior as well as senior team several times.

He has also represented India at the international level and won medals for the country. He won many medals, representing the junior and senior teams of Gujarat in more than 50 national table tennis competitions. Representing India, he has played for the Indian team in about 35 international junior table tennis tournaments. He has won medals for the Indian team at the Asian Junior Championships, World Junior Championships, World Junior Circuit Finals, World School Games and Asian School Games.

Currently preparing for the next Olympics during the Corona transition period, Manush is practicing at his home for 2 hours a day under the guidance of a coach and also working hard for his physical fitness and agility under the guidance of a physio.

Manush Shah said, the Tops scheme will not only helped him to achieve his goals for wining a medal in olympics but also the much needed national and international exposure before the competition.

He thanked his coach for providing the table and robot to help him practice at home during this difficult time. He eyes a Olympic medal and inspiration for the upcoming players.