Hitting the Target

It’s strange that 30-year-old Chekrovolu Swuro,the seniormost member of India’s women’s archery squad,is called “Anha”,which means “little sister” in her native Naga language. But Swuro doesn’t seem to mind. She’s as much at ease with her junior counterparts as with her bow and arrow. And perfectly comfortable being referred to as a little sister by them. The nickname has stuck on with her ever since she first went to the old Nehru Stadium in Delhi to watch her elder sister Vesozolu,a former archer,compete in the game. For Vesozolu’s ‘anha’,that was the beginning of her journey with archery. “Whatever I am today is because of my sister. She started first and I picked it from her,”says Swuro of her sister,who is also her mentor and guide.

While Deepika Kumari,the Ranchi teenager and world no.1 archer,has hogged the limelight in the run-up to London 2012,and Laishram Bombayla Devi,the 27-year-old Manipuri archer who’s also part of the three-member women’s team,represented India at Beijing (2008),Swuro has been mostly in the shadows of Indian archery,even though she’s been taking part in competitions for over 16 years.

At 14,Swuro joined the Tata Archery Academy in 1996,in its first batch of archers; two years later,she made her India debut at the first Asian Archery Circuit Meet in 1999,where she won a silver. Since then,her profile has grown with several achievements,including a bronze at the Asian Grand Prix in Yangon,Myanmar,in 2006,and a bronze at the 2008 Asian Games in Guangzhou,China,to name a few.

But the Olympics has been an elusive dream for Swuro. In the last two editions — Athens (2004) and Beijing (2008) — the girl from Dzulhami village in Nagaland’s Phek district has had tough luck. She was part of the Indian women’s qualifying team for Athens (2004) and Beijing (2008),but both times,she lost the trials (competitions to determine who can be part of the final three-member team that goes to the Olympics) to finish either a close fourth or fifth. This time,however,she has been lucky. The three-member women’s archery squad,comprising her,along with Devi and Kumari,clinched the silver medal at the World Archery Championship in Turin,Italy,in July last year,and with that,berths for the team and individual players for London 2012. Thankfully for her,the Archery ­Association of India (AAI) has chosen not to put the archers to trials. It declared the team months in advance. “Our individual performances last year were very good and the federation decided to keep faith in us,” she says.

Does the long wait for the Olympic berth bother her,considering that those younger and junior to her haven’t had to wait as much as she did? “Maybe God wanted me to wait for longer,” says Swuro,who is also an assistant subinspector with the Nagaland Police.

In the midst of the last leg of preparations before flying off to London,Swuro has a peculiar complaint. She can’t attend the Sunday mass. “There is no time because we practise on Sundays. But in Nagaland,I attend church. Here (in Kolkata),it’s mostly on occasions like Good Friday or Christmas. But when I find time,I go to the Park Street church or to the Nagaland House where there is a regular Sunday service.” Indeed,Swuro is quite religious,as she can’t stop praising god for her Olympic berth. “He gifted me this talent,otherwise I wouldn’t have come this far.”

As per local newspaper reports,it seems the whole of Nagaland is praying for Swuro. After all,she is the only Naga to make it to the Olympics,after Dr T Ao,who captained the Indian football team in 1948,and represented India at the Olympics that year (also held at London). She doesn’t seem to be overwhelmed by her state’s expectations though. “It’s good to know they want me to do well. Even I feel if I could do my state and country proud,my job would be done,” says Swuro.

Her relaxed state of mind is a far cry from the period of distress she went through after narrowly missing Olympic berths previously. “I thought my time was up,and decided to help my younger brother Thupoyi’s career. But I made the cut by doing well and got through,when nobody,including me thought it was possible. So here I am,” she says.

Poornima Mahto,Indian archery coach and Vesozolu’s former teammate,who has seen Swuro from her Tata days,says she has survived many difficult periods and now is the time for her to prosper. “Anha used to qualify with the team but would do badly in the trials. Fourth-fifth,yahi rank hoti thi. It was very frustrating for her. Anyone else would have quit long ago. But she hung around. We are so happy for her,” she says.

Swuro is a simple girl,for whom family is central. Following her sister’s path,she has bought a house in Dimapur,Nagaland’s largest city,where her 85-year-old father Vepoyi,who was a farmer in her native village,her mother and her elder brother’s family stay. “Wo buddhe ho gaye hai,we can’t expect him to work forever,” she says.

One day,she hopes to retire “as gracefully as” Vesozolu,and fulfill her other ambition to support her younger brother’s career. Right now,it’s another little step towards her personal goal.