Shivam Shetty who is India Rank number 1 recently won gold for India in the Mount Everest G2 Taekwondo Championship. In total he has won 13 national medals and three international medals as the young athlete aims to qualify for the Taekwondo World Championship. In this exclusive interview he speaks about his taekwondo journey, his experience at the Mount Everest G2 tournament, training regimes and his future goals.

Q 1) Tell us about your Taekwondo journey, how were you introduced to the sport and what made you take it up professionally?

I am India Rank-1 and was basically a kid with a weak immune system. To face health issues I had started Taekwondo. After some positive results I started developing an interest in the sport. At the Junior Nationals I felt that there is not much difference between me and the senior international players. That’s when I decided to take the sport seriously.

Q2) How was your experience at the recently concluded Mount Everest G2 Taekwondo Championship?
   
It was an amazing experience for me personally as I’m happy to raise the India flag at the top of the podium. During the course of the tournament I had to defeat many Indian athletes and national team members of Nepal and Pakistan. In the final I had to defeat Pakistan to claim the Mount Everest G2 Taekwondo Championship

Q3) What are the biggest challenges that you have faced in your career? How did you overcome it?

Politics in the sport and injuries to me are the biggest challenges I faced in my career but with the help of my coach and my parents they helped me overcome all the adversity.

Q4) In 2020 you stood 3rd in the El Hassan Open, how was the tournament experience and how was it different to your gold medal in the India Open?

To be honest, the India Open was kind of a national championship with all top players where I had to prove myself that I’m the best in India. The El Hassan Cup was held in Jordan so I had to compete with international players as the level of competition was very tough and also it was a different experience altogether for me.

Q5) Who are some of your Taekwondo idols that you have been inspired by?

My coach was the first person I initially got inspired by, then later in my career I started watching Lee Dae Hoon from Korea and Mirhasem Hosseini from Iran who became my Taekwondo idols 

Q6) What are your future goals and how do you plan to achieve them?

My main goal as of now is to compete in the World Championship and Asian Games and also gain my world ranking. Personally, I want to increase the tempo and experience from the regular Open Championships that I participate in order to help me prepare mentally and physically. 

Also read: I want to change the existing situation of taekwondo in India: Atul Raghav