From being scared of heights to winning the national climbing title for 4 straight years, Ajij Shaikh has come a long way

Ajij Shaikh

How many of you know the national champion in climbing for India? Well, those of you who don't, meet Ajij Shaikh, a 4-time consecutive national climbing champion, who has won so many trophies that he admits he doesn't have space for more at his residence.

But the journey to greatness, as is the case with many, doesn't come easy and it was no exception in the case of Ajij as well.

“I began climbing for a different reason. When I was in school, I would do yoga and athletics. I was scared of heights and in 2008-09, I entered one of the climbing competitions and the coach spotted me there and was impressed and told me that if I intended to continue, I could do well moving forward.

“But unfortunately, I couldn't continue. I took part in the Nationals in 2009 and finished 6th. I wasn't so much interested at the start but developed it slowly.

“I began working as an instructor on the wall. Then in, I competed in yet another competition- The Open Nationals- and this time finished 2nd. That proved to be a lucky competition for me because prior to that, I hadn't too well and that event also had many national winners and to come second in that event gave my confidence and self-belief a big boost.

“Then the same year at a zonal event in Bhopal, I came 3rd. I was competing against some national and international winners and it was hard for me to compete with them.

“But I decided to give my best and not think about the rest. I gave my 100% and won the event and after 16 years, it was West Zone's 1st Gold medal. I won the Nationals for four consecutive years after that interest became a target.

“2016 proved to be disappointing as I was disqualified. Then I made yet another comeback and won a Gold again,” Ajij said in a telephonic interview to Sportskeeda.

As is the case with any budding athlete, one of the key aspects is the support one receives from his or her parents. Unfortunately, in Ajij’s case, it wasn’t so.

“I feel I am very lucky. I didn't get support from my parents since they don't know a lot about the sport. I have a small family and there are no sportspersons in my family.

“That was a bit hard. So whatever I had to do I had to do on my own.I started to work and began to do climb as well side-by-side.

“Once my achievements began appearing in the media, then they started to know. In 2012 when I came back from France after competing at the World Championships many MLAs and media personalities mentioned me, that helped them understand further.

“But despite doing so much, there was no government support, no facilities. You had to still do it on your own. Every sport, if you see, either nationally or internationally, you get a reward for doing well.

“But that sadly isn't the case with climbing. There is not a lot of value and it's sad despite achieving so much. I have so many trophies that there isn't space to keep them now.

When we go to compete in international events, we have to spend from our own pocket. 1-2 guys travel to compete and for the government to not fund them is a bit sad,” he said.

Climbing is an extremely daunting task and as is the case with many such scenarios, one’s ability to remain calm is a vital feature to have. In order to maintain composure before and during a competition, Ajij tries different routines.

For Ajij, Pravin CM(left) is an inspiration

“See, Climbing is a sport where on a day-to-day basis, you need to keep pushing yourself to perform. If you are behind on time even on one hold, then it can affect your position.

“On the national or the international front, it's very hard to develop that consistency in your performances at that level. So prior to a day of the event, I watch motivational movies.

“On the day of the competition, 30 minutes before, I do meditation. During the 3-4 days when the event is on, I don't talk a lot.

“I listen to music. That helps me not take too much pressure. Whenever I do climb, I just look to give my 100% and not think too much about it being a competition. Whenever I start to feel the pressure, then it has an impact on the muscles as well.

“When I am competing, I don't think of it as a competition and rather think of it as a normal practice session.If I start to feel different in my muscles then I start to do something different in order to feel more positive,” Ajij said.

In a career spanning over 5 years, one must have certainly endured several challenges. For Ajij, the comeback that he made this remains his most challenging task that he has undertaken.

“I think every task is challenging. Assuming that in practice, I do very well, but if in those 6 minutes of competition I don't deliver, then the hard work during the entire year goes to waste.

“Those 6 minutes are critical to me. But I think making a comeback after a loss was the most challenging aspect.

“Last to last year, There was a move that couldn't execute and as a result, I slipped. So to come back this year and perform was very challenging,” he said.

Talking about his inspiration, Ajij refers to Pravin CM, from whom he says he learnt a lot.

“From India, I think its Pravin CM from Bangalore. We have not competed together neither did he give any training to me, but watching him I learnt a lot.When I was young, I couldn't believe some of the feats he did.

“When you see stars walk around, when people salute him, you also think you want people to do the same thing to you.I had kept a target that I should become like him, climb like him. I had decided 6-7 years back, I will go past them and become the best,” Ajij said.

In under a month’s time, India will be playing host to the climbing World Cup in Navi Mumbai, but Ajij isn’t too optimistic about India getting the required funds.

“I think it is very difficult to attain such a huge amount in such a short span of time. The issues once again come down to the facilities and the support. Prior to the competition, I remain motivated, but despite achieving so much, I have not yet reached that level. I am not that serious about the World Cup as such,” he said.

The Organising Committee for the Tokyo Olympics had recommended climbing as an additional sport for the 2020 Olympics last year and reacting to that news, Ajij felt that the inclusion of climbing could help the sport get more recognition.

“Yes. When I heard about, I felt good. How many years can we compete at most? 2 years? 3 years? After a level, your body and your muscles also don't remain the same. So I think its good that we have a platform to prove yourself.

“Because most importantly, unless you have a target there is no meaning to your performance. The Nationals, zonals are certain platforms.If it does come into the Olympics, then we could also be seen like sportspersons

“At the moment, nobody even talks about it. People don't know who the national champion is, how many climbers are out there etc,” he said.

He finished by asking his fellow climbers to not think about what they are lacking and rather focus on having a goal and achieving it.

“All I want them to do is not think about what is going to happen in the future. No one knows what will happen tomorrow. Maybe climbing can get the recognition it deserves.

Don't blame the lack of facilities. If your mind is strong and you have a target, then those facilities that you don't have will matter very less to you.

“You should have a goal and an aim and you can do anything,” he concluded.

We request you to dig deep and amplify the voice of our climbers. Share our story, contribute to our campaign (www.ketto.org/giriviharforclimbingwc) and spread the word. Sending the team will be an achievement that will pave the way for more climbers to take up the sport and chase their dreams. So let’s make it happen!

To raise funds for similar causes visit Ketto.org, a crowdfunding platform for social, personal and creative causes.

Edited by Staff Editor