No shortcuts to success

Syeda Falak, popularly known as the Golden Girl of Hyderabad, recently won a Gold medal at the USA Open Karate Championship 2016 in the Senior Female Kumite category,  in which 42 countries participated.

Overwhelmed with the win, Syeda says, “It was a great experience to compete at the USA Open Karate Championship 2016. I was determined to give my best and was confident that I would do well. But I hadn’t initially expected to win the Gold.”

Syeda is the first person from Telangana to win the title. “I am very happy that I could unfurl the Tiranga in the USA,” says the 21-year-old who has so far won 13 international and 18 national championships.

Syeda takes her training very seriously. She trains for four to six hours, which comprises two to three sessions of Karate, and fitness and endurance training, six days a week. “It’s very important to keep in mind that success cannot be achieved with shortcuts. One should also never give up easily after losing. These will help you to achieve any feat,” she says.

Syeda, who is currently pursuing MA in English, also finds time to juggle between academics and her passion. Talking about the challenges she faced, she says, “There have been many challenges since the beginning. But I was somebody who loved challenges. When I moved to advance level of training, there were no good sparring partners in Hyderabad to train with. There was no one to look up to and no one to guide me for the professional level. Some people ask my father why he is spending so much on a girl, but he has been very supportive throughout.”

This year, Syeda will be taking part in the World Championship in Austria in October and the India Open International Karate Championship in August among others. But her aim, however, is to win medals for India at the Asian Games, World Championship and the Olympics.