VISAKHAPATNAM: A resident of Visakhapatnam, young sprinter Jyothi Yarraji recovered amazingly to clinch her maiden gold in the 100-metre hurdles of the Asian Athletics Championships in Bangkok on Thursday.
While braving the rain during the run, she slipped at the seventh hurdle. But she maintained her balance and touched the tape in 13.09 seconds.
A few years ago, only sports enthusiasts of Vizag were aware of Jyothi Yarraji. But within a short time, she has made her own identity as India's brightest athlete, the P.T. Usha version from Andhra Pradesh.
Jyothi, born on August 28, 1999, is the daughter of Suryanarayana, a private security guard, and Kumari, a part-time worker in a city’s hospital. The family’s total earnings are less than ₹18,000 per month. Jyothi grew up in an atmosphere of limited resources, with determination of adding to the family’s income. This became a big motivation behind her sports journey.
Jyothi got spotted during her school days in Visakhapatnam’s Port DLB High School. Her physical education teacher observed she had a good height and could be a good hurdler. With that, she got a break at Visakhapatnam District Athletics Association. There, she met her mentor M. Narayana Rao, who is selection committee chairman of AP State Athletics Association.
Narayana Rao says: Jyothi’s journey has been very tough. She joined Nagarjuna University’s Excellency Centre, where she got a foreign coach. When the centre closed, she went to Bhubaneswar. She survived on charity during her coaching period.”
Jyothi’s present coach is Jems K. Hillar, a former Olympian. Narayana Rao says “In nine months, Jyothi has broken her own nine records. She has the P.T. Usha potential in her.”
Jyothi will be in China next month. She will proceed to World Athletics Championship at Budapest in 2024. Later, she will participate in the Paris Olympics. Expectations are high from Jyothi, with her currently being the fastest 100-metre hurdler among women in India.
