Lucknow :

Yet another farmer’s daughter Punam Yadav braved odds to add another shade of gold at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games to India’s tally on Sunday.

While the 22-year-old from Dandupur village in Varanasi, was basking in glory in Australia, her elder sister Shashi Yadav talked about the roads of struggle they had to overcome before success came.

It wasn’t easy for the Yadav sisters – Punam, Shashi and Pooja who took to weightlifting despite coming from a family with moderate means.

Their father Kailash Nath Yadav being a marginal farmer, it was difficult for the seven siblings (five sisters and two brothers) from the very beginning.

“We had to struggle all through, not only financially, but also had to break through the societal pressure of playing sports despite being girls.”

Now with both Punam and Shashi employed with Indian Railways, there is financial stability in the family. “The best thing was that our father, himself a sports lover, backed us all through.”

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> News> City News> Lucknow News / by Asheem Mukerji / TNN / April 09th, 2018