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What’s the story?
Indian Luger, Shiva Keshavan found an unlikely helping hand from Daria Obratov of Croatia at the Nations Cup, the qualifying race for the Viessmann World Cup, in Calgary, Canada.
Shortly before the start of the event, Keshavan noticed that his sled was badly damaged. However, Obratov came forward and offered to help Keshavan by lending him her own sled. The Indian gracefully accepted the offer in the face of the emergency and went on to finish at 41st out of 43 in the Nations Cup.
Importantly, though, he secured a single World Cup point to keep alive his hopes of taking part in his sixth Olympics.
In case you didn’t know…
Five-time Olympian Shiva Keshavan is the first Indian to have represented the country in luge at the Winter Olympic Games. The reigning Asian Champion set a new Asian speed record at 134.3 km/h (83.5 mph) in the Asia Cup 2011 at Nagano, Japan, where he won the gold medal.
The heart of the matter
The scenario was so bad that Keshavan might have had to abandon the race altogether. It would have jeopardised his chances of qualifying for the Olympics whatsoever.
The five-time Olympic starter later wrote on his Facebook page:
But just at the right moment, Obratov stepped in.
Although Keshavan accepted Obratov’s offer, it wasn’t the most ideal of situations for him. The newly borrowed sled was extremely small for Keshavan. However, he did go on to drive the unfamiliar equipment and keep his Olympic hopes alive.
Obratov, who had finished 25th in the Nations Cup, was happy to have been able to help her friend even though he comes from a different nation. She wrote on her Facebook page:
What’s next?
Keshavan will be taking part at the Viessmann World Cup at his home track in Lake Placid, New York State later this season.
Author’s take
It is heartwarming to see fellow athletes looking out for each other in spite of being from different nations. It is such incidents that make sport worth watching.
