From training at the warm and cosy IIS facilities in Bellary, Karnataka to competing in Nur Sultan, Kazakhstan at the Asian Indoor Championships itself was half the battle won for triple jumper Praveen Chitravel. Chitravel returned with a silver, his first major international medal, with a best effort of 16.98m less than a fortnight ago.
The 21-year-old, who has spent most of his life in Southern India, admits he has an aversion to cold weather. It was no less than a nightmare for him to land in Nur Sultan when the minimum temperature was dipping below -24* C.
“Forget training outside, it was so cold out there that you couldn’t even walk a few hundred metres out there,” says Chitravel, who is still in the middle of his off-season training. The Tamil Nadu athlete didn’t even have the luxury of time to get himself acclimatised to the massive difference in weather – landing from 30* C to -25* C.
“Forget training outside, it was so cold out there that you couldn’t even walk a few hundred metres out there,” says Chitravel, who is still in the middle of his off-season training.
A couple of years ago, a younger Chitravel would have given up hopes of doing well at the first sight of Nur Sultan’s unforgiving weather. But, in his own words, he’s a different person now. “That’s the difference between a normal athlete and a professional athlete. Everything has changed, I have changed. I have realised how minute the difference between winning and losing is,” he says.
At Nur Sultan, Chitravel landed on the day of his competition, which turned out to be a blessing in disguise. His team cracked the code with a very simple approach: stay indoors. “From the airport to the hotel, from the hotel bus to the indoor stadium. I tried my best to not expose myself to the weather outside,” says Chitravel, who was holed up in his hotel room for hours before the competition. Whenever he lands in a new city for a competition, he likes to venture out and explore the surroundings, but couldn’t take that risk in Kazakhstan.
“My foreign training stints have taught me to think and work like a professional. I have observed how disciplined and focused top athletes are. I asked myself why I have come here. The answer was to compete. So I was clear that I wasn’t going to step out until my competition gets over,” says Chitravel.
He made up for his time indoors post his meet, evident by his snow-filled Instagram reels.
Chitravel has been training under two-time world championship medallist Cuban Yoandri Betanzos for almost a year now at JSW’s IIS facilities in Bellary.
Steady progress
Chitravel has been training under two-time world championship medallist Cuban Yoandri Betanzos for almost a year now at JSW’s IIS facilities in Bellary. Betanzos’ power-first approach seems to be working well for Chitravel, who has added zing to his technique since the Cuban’s arrival.
“My training has improved immensely. He focuses both on power and technique. He corrected the way I was lifting my feet during jumps and that has helped me add more explosiveness,” says Chitravel. Despite the silver medal, Chitravel feels he is a work in progress and nowhere close to realising his true potential. “It’s been just a year with coach Betanzos and there are plenty of things to improve in my jump,” he says.
The Asian indoor silver has come as a balm for Chitravel, who missed the bronze at the 2022 Commonwealth Games by just 3cms. If he he had won a medal at Birmingham, it would have been a podium sweep for India with Eldhose Paul and Aboobacker winning gold and silver respectively.
“I was obviously shattered that I missed the medal by such a small margin. It wasn’t that 3cm that bothered me but my technique and approach. If I had landed the jump the way I had trained, those three centimetres wouldn’t have mattered. That day, I realised how important every single aspect of your jump is,” he says.
Chitravel has been on the circuit for a while and his outgoing nature has made him popular among athletes. He admits that he was a little too casual during his early days as an athlete. “It is not just the training but everything. I used to sleep at around 12 earlier but now I am off to bed at 10. I have limited my social media use and never miss training,” he says.
But the biggest and toughest change, as per the youngster, has been controlling his diet. Chitravel loves his seafood with a generous amount of spice. “At IIS, we get fish but it’s bland. However, that’s the best for my body. Oh, then there’s biryani, crabs, prawns (lists out a complete menu)… But now I have to keep a check on my eating habits. I am a professional now.”