Behind a Sports Champion - a rare guide for future stars

Sreekar Mothukuri's new book, a compilation of interviews of sports personalities, their parents and the coaches, talks about the importance of guidance from early years.

Sreekar Mothukuri, the author of Behind a Sports Champion.

It is a unique venture, a book that will provide comprehensive guidance to the parents of aspiring champions.

An engineer by profession, but an all-round sportsman Sreekar Mothukuri who has played badminton, cricket, tennis and table tennis at different levels in India and abroad, has interviewed the sports personalities, their parents, the coaches, psychologists, nutritionists, doctors and fitness experts in putting together an invaluable book 'Behind a Sports Champion' which is ready for a global launch this month.

"Parents are the first coaches of the child. If parents do not show commitment, the child will not show interest," says PV Ramana, father of World Champion and double Olympic medallist PV Sindhu.

"He started playing table tennis at the age of five. In juniors, he never achieved anything. If we had stopped my son in the tenth grade as he was not getting results, we would have missed one Padma Shri," says Srinivas Rao, father of table tennis star Sharath Kamal.

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Sreekar wanted to be a cricketer, but could not pursue his goal despite being motivated and committed, owing to a "lack of knowledge and guidance’’. That is the prime reason for the emergence of the book.

"Parents should focus on their child’s education and nutrition. They should not interfere in sports. The more they interfere, the more it will affect the child’s performance," says Dinesh Lad, coach of Rohit Sharma and Shardul Thakur.

The renowned chess coach RB Ramesh suggests that "parents should not spend beyond their means", as it would backfire if the child does not meet their expectations with results.

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"Children can start fitness training after 12, but only if they enjoy it," says Shankar Basu, former strength and conditioning coach of the Indian cricket team.

With more than 50 interviews, the book spanning 350-odd pages is nothing short of a treasure trove.

The author, who has travelled across the country and abroad for the interviews, warns that there is no ready-made formula for success but points out, ‘’the chances of success increase if you follow the right steps suggested by the experts’’.