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Ram Baboo won a bronze medal at the Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou in the 35km race walking mixed team event. Coming from an extremely poor background, Baboo faced several financial challenges. In addition to this, when the world came to a standstill during the COVID-19 lockdown, he was also left without a coach and a place to train. This period was a true test of his determination and resilience.
Speaking exclusively to Sportskeeda, Ram Baboo spoke about his struggles during the pandemic and how he managed to overcome them.
“During Covid, due to the lockdown, everything was closed. There was no coach to train me either.”
When the lockdown restrictions began to ease in July 2020, the situation remained far from ideal for Ram Baboo. Travel and public spaces, including stadiums and cinemas, remained off-limits.
“In July 2020, the lockdown eased a little, but travel and public places like stadiums and cinemas were still not open. While the stadiums were closed, I trained on the road without a coach. At that time, I used to talk to Anup sir from Uttarakhand. He is a walking coach. I requested that he train me and promised to train well. But he asked me to come here and said he cannot train me in any other manner because he doesn’t believe in it.”
Despite his request for help with a training regime being shot down, Ram Baboo persevered and continued to humbly ask Anup Sir for help.
“I continued to request him for several days. He finally gave me a workout, but he said Bawant sir could train me better as I was training for 50 km and Bawant sir had already been in the camp for 50km for 3–4 years. He was also a coach. I then spoke to Bawant sir for training, but his father was unwell, and he said, “I am busy now; manage now. When I am free, I will train you." I trained for a week. After that, Mr. Basant started training me. I was doing better, but my pace was never consistent, and this made Sir angry. Basant sir also knew about the situation at home.”
During this time of financial struggle, social media became a lifeline for Ram Baboo. He turned to Facebook to reach out to people, NGOs, and various organizations, seeking help and support for his athletic journey.
“I used Facebook a lot. While using the app, I used to message people, NGOs, and several others and ask for help. I used to text them, saying I needed help and that I could achieve great things with their support. But no one listened to me at that time except Kannan Sir.”
In a world full of noise, only one man, Kannan Sir, extended his helping hand.
“There is a group Kannan sir has in Bangalore called KS Fit Academy. He introduced me to his group and even made me meet them. Then people started to get to know me. They collected funding for me. They collected about Rs. 75,000–78,000 and gave it to me. I invested this money in my training. I was training in Bhopal at that time. This entire thing, meeting Kannan sir, turned out to be a life-changing moment for me,” Ram Baboo acknowledged it with gratitude.
"The performance was automatically getting better" - Ram Baboo on his training at ASI Pune.
Ram Baboo's relentless dedication and the support he received began to pay off when he secured his first medal in 2021, a silver medal in the 50-kilometer race. This achievement caught the attention of his coach, Mr. Basant, who took it upon himself to help Ram Baboo further.
“My first medal came in 2021 in the 50 km silver medal. After winning the medal, Basant sir called me to the army after talking to the CO. He spoke to the CO, saying that I was from a poor family, and if the living and food were taken care of at ASI in Pune, I could train better and achieve better things.”
Just six months after joining the ASI in Pune, Ram Baboo broke the national record in September 2021 during the Open National in the 35-kilometer event.
“In April 2021, I went to ASI Pune. There were several Army and senior athletes from whom I got to learn a lot. The environment was good, so the performance was automatically getting better. 6 months after this shift, I broke the national record in September 2021 in the Open National in the 35 km event.”
Ram Baboo was also selected for the national camp following this achievement, and he acknowledged Basant sir’s support for turning his dreams into reality.
“After that, I was selected for the camp. All this was because of Basant sir's support. The medal I got in the national game was another turning point in my life.”
Ram Baboo has now made a shift to the 20km race walk event, and the athlete from Buxar, Uttar Pradesh, aims to make it to the podium at the Paris Olympics next year.
