Hyderabad gymnast Aruna eyes comeback at Nationals in October

Aruna suffered an injury on her right leg in March last year and underwent two surgeries – one in June and another in December in 2022

Hyderabad: At a time when the top Indian gymnasts are showcasing their skills on the mat at the selection trials for the upcoming Asian Games, one notable miss from the action was Hyderabad’s Budda Aruna Reddy.

The third ACL grade injury on her right leg and the fourth surgery ruled the the former World Cup vault bronze medallist out of the Asian Games. The gymnast, who had competed in the last two Asian Games in 2014 and 2018, is currently focusing on regaining full fitness.

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The 27-year-old Hyderabad girl is putting in hard yards at the Gaudium School under the watchful eyes of her coach Manoj Rana. “I have come to terms with the fact that injuries are part of the game. If I pause and ponder over it, it will take away my energy. Instead, I chose to invest it on training. I always look at the bright side. I am training hard to get back into competitive mode by the next Nationals which will be held in October,” said Aruna.

Aruna suffered an injury on her right leg in March last year and underwent two surgeries – one in June and another in December in 2022. When it comes to making comebacks, she knows a thing or two as she made two successful ones from injuries. “I suffered injuries on my right leg twice before this one. So I have made comebacks. What I have learnt from that is that I should not allow negative thoughts get into my mind. Physically, I have shown that I can come back successfully. That also made me strong mentally,” she pointed out.

“Since the recovery needs a lot of time, I started my fitness regime soon after the surgery. I am fully fit physically. I am doing all the routine. I also started working on vault, floor and beam landings recently. The plan is to make a comeback with Nationals in October and then planning to compete in some invitational tournaments abroad,” she elaborated.

After the Asian Games miss, Aruna has set her sights on the Paris Olympics next year. “The Olympic qualification trials will be over in October and three teams have been qualified. There are a few places remaining in individual categories for which the World Cup tournaments will be held from January to March next year. We will have an idea on the qualification scores after October. And we will work on it to qualify for the Paris Games.”

When asked about struggles with injuries, she said, “Whenever I was at the peak of my performances, I suffered injuries. I have spent four years with injuries. I missed the 2021 Commonwealth Games and Tokyo Olympics. Representing the country in the Olympics is my dream and I will give my all in the trials,” she revealed.