Dipa Karmakar is an Indian artistic gymnast. Dipa was born on August 9, 1993, in Agartala and grew up in Tripura. She is the first Indian gymnast to qualify for the Olympics, having qualified for both the 2012 and 2016 games.
In 2012, Dipa became the first ever female gymnast from India to win a medal at an Asian Games. She won two golds, one silver and two bronze medals at various major competitions including the 2014 Commonwealth Games where she became a three-time Commonwealth medallist (two golds).
Her Early Life
Dipa Karmakar was born on the 9th of August 1993 in Agartala, Tripura in a middle-class family. She was first spotted by the Tripura Gymnastics Association as a promising gymnast in her age group and she took to the sport with enthusiasm. At the age of nine, she participated in the Commonwealth Youth Games held in Manchester, England.
She performed well and eventually got herself selected into Tripura's State Sports Academy where she trained daily for 1.5 hours. During this time, she was also a student of class 7th at Kripali Academy School and completed her schooling there.
Her Early Gymnastics Career
Having started gymnastics at a young age Dipa Karmakar continued to train consistently to attain the success she got to as the first Indian artistic gymnast. In her early years as a gymnast, she suffered from a flat foot, which evidently affects the performance of gymnasts.
However, she managed to perform exceptionally well through good planning of her diet and physical activities and extensive training, which later helped her to develop arched feet. Knowing about Dipa Karmakar, she found success in every competition that she took part in, winning medals and awards.
She first participated and won a bronze medal at the Sub Junior Asian Artistic Gymnastics in India. She also went on to win gold medals in the Commonwealth Games in 2010 (Delhi), Asian Championships in 2013 (Indonesia) and 2014 (China), Asia Pacific Championships 2014 (Australia) and the Southeast Asian games 2014 held in Myanmar where she won three gold medals.
Her Senior Level Gymnastics Career
In 2012, Dipa Karmakar was successfully able to qualify for the Olympics for gymnastics as an individual participant representing India, which later not only helped Dipa Karmakar Olympics gold medal pursuit but also the Nation of India.
She also won a silver medal in the 2013 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Antwerp. Dipa Karmakar was adjudged by the International Gymnastics Federation as the Best Female Gymnast at the Asian Artistic Gymnastics Championships 2014 held at Incheon, South Korea.
At this competition, she performed very well and defeated many other competitors, becoming the Champion of Asia.
She was also awarded by the Ministry of Youth Affairs, Sports and Youth Affairs by Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi and President of India Pranab Mukherjee for her Olympic medal pursuit in 2015. By 2017, Dipa was already one of the most popular female celebrity athletes in India.
In the Asian Gymnastics Championship held on 21-25th October 2017 in Indonesia, Dipa Karmakar suffered an ACL injury during a practice session when she fell from the apparatus. She was recommended by her doctors not to compete in any further events, which led her to be out of action for more than five months.
Her Commonwealth Games and Asian Championship Performance
Dipa Karmakar won two gold medals (Vault and Parallel Bars) at the 2014 Commonwealth Games held in Glasgow, Scotland. She also won two gold medals (Balance Beam and Vault) at the 2014 Incheon Asian Games in South Korea. She also won a bronze medal at the 2015 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Glasgow, Scotland.
Dipa Karmakar was awarded India's fourth highest civilian award, Rajeev Shukla Award for excellence in sports given by President Pranab Mukherjee in 2015.She won four medals at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
Dipa Karmakar's Rehabilitation
After returning to training, Dipa Karmakar was diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS), which is a connective tissue disorder that causes the joints to become loose and unstable due to the poor structure of collagen.
This made it very difficult for Dipa to practice and thus her training sessions were very short and intense. However, she did not let it stop her from participating in the 2018 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships held in China.
Sports psychologists were also hired to assist her during her rehabilitation and with the support of her family and friends, she was able to overcome this problem. Dipa Karmakar was able to endure it all and became a stronger person after this incident.
Dipa Karmakar is still training hard to participate in the upcoming Olympic games scheduled to be held in the coming years. She has successfully participated in many international and domestic competitions including the National Games of India.
Her Achievements and Awards
Dipa Karmakar became the first Indian female artistic gymnast to qualify for the Olympics in both 2012 and 2016.
She has won the prestigious BJP Yuva Award, Rajeev Shukla Award 2014, the fifth Arjuna Award 2015 and the fifth Padma Shri 2015.
Dipa Karmakar has contributed a great deal to her nation. Apart from being an elite athlete, she also supports many budding athletes by helping them with their training and furthering their careers. She was also awarded the Padma Shri by the Indian government for her outstanding performance in the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.
She won a bronze medal in the world gymnastics championship in 2013 and a silver medal in the world cup competition in 2014
Inspiration to Young Women
The Indian superstar Dipa Karmakar gymnastics history would always play the part of being an inspiration to younger women because of her determination, perseverance and absolute dedication to the sport. She continues to train hard and is upbeat about her participation in the upcoming World Cup and Olympics.
Dipa Karmakar is a great example of how female athletes from India as well as other nations should pursue their dreams even when it becomes challenging at times. There will always be odds that they have to face and they need to overcome those difficulties through perseverance.
Dipa Karmakar's dream of winning an Olympic medal in gymnastics Olympics may ultimately play a part in inspiring younger female Indians in India as well as other nations.
Dipa Karmakar Gymnastics Achievements
Dipa Karmakar is a renowned Indian athlete who has achieved great success in her career as a Gymnast. Dipa had many achievements and awards throughout her career and her achievements are listed below:
● Bronze Medal Winner at Asian Artistic Gymnastics Championships 2014 held at Incheon, South Korea.
● Dipa Karmakar was adjudged by the International Gymnastics Federation as the Best Female Gymnast at the Asian Artistic Gymnastics Championships 2014 held at Incheon, South Korea.
● Gold Medal and Silver Medal in Commonwealth Games 2014 held in Glasgow, Scotland and Gold Medal in Asian Games in 2014 held in South Korea.
● Padma Shri Award given by the Indian Government for her outstanding performance in Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.
● The Rajeev Shukla Award for excellence in sports was given by President Pranab Mukherjee (2015). In addition to this, Dipa also got her 5th Arjuna Award.
Conclusion
This article is kind of a biography of Dipa Karmakar as she is one of the most innovative female athletes in India. She is known for her extraordinary performances in her sport and has given India a lot of hope and inspiration. She has the potential to become one of the most successful athletes in Indian history in the near future.
Dipa Karmakar is one of those rare athletes who have taken up a challenging career as a gymnast and will continue to improve upon her skills and achieve more success in her career as time passes by.
FAQs
How many gymnastics medals did Dipa Karmakar win?
Dipa Karmakar won two gold medals (Vault and Parallel Bars) at the 2014 Commonwealth Games held in Glasgow, Scotland. She also won two gold medals (Balance Beam and Vault) at the 2014 Incheon Asian Games in South Korea. She also won a bronze medal at the 2015 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Glasgow, Scotland.
What is the future of Dipa Karmakar?
In a recent interview, Dipa Karmakar was quoted saying that she will be participating in future Olympic games.
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