Jatwara village is like any other small Indian village with limited facilities.
It’s located near one of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Taj Mahal.
But sport has made a big difference here.
Every evening, local boys and girls jog around the village to warm up... before picking up their hockey sticks and practicing.
Brijesh Sen leads the warm up exercises.... hands up in the air… touch the feet… and rotate your belly…
They practice every day in the village now, says Kailash Sharma.
“It’s a must for children to jog and exercise, doing a round of the village which is about 2-3 kilometers. Then they do some light exercise at school. After that, they start playing hockey.”
The hockey school was set up in 2011 by Andrea Thumshirn, a German hockey player.
“It started with hockey,” says Andrea.
“And then I realised that I can’t make them understand me because they don’t speak my language. So I gave them English classes. And then I realised, ok English classes are fine, but the overall education is very poor in the village. So I started my own school last year. So we’re running a school in the Hockey Academy and in the meantime, more than 80 boys and girls playing here.”
At first it was difficult for Andrea to adjust to life in India....
“I had a good life back in Germany. But for me personally, it’s also a nice experience to live with almost nothing on a very low base. So I learn what’s really important in life and how I can enjoy my life with less.”
Five boys from the hockey school will be travelling to Hamburg, Germany later this month.
Andrea has managed to gather sponsors from some European hockey clubs for a two-month trip.
Brijesh can’t wait for the trip… to learn more about advanced hockey techniques.
“I feel really good that I’m going abroad. This would never have been possible for me as my family is very poor. It is only because of Andrea that we’re going overseas. I thank her very much.”
Before travelling to Germany, Andrea is taking the team for a friendly match in Jaipur.
They’re playing against the hockey team from the Paramjeet Hockey Academy.
The village team scored first... but the home team won the match 2-1.
“The village team played well but lost the match due to a lack of concentration,” says Ashutos, the winning captain.
Back to the village...
Brijesh’ mother Sunita Sen is proud that her boy is among the five boys who will be travelling abroad to play hockey.
“If he plays well then he will have a bright future. He has to work hard to achieve success in life.”
Although she’s not going herself, Saarthi Sharma is proud that her friends are going abroad…
“We’re happy that the boys are going abroad. I expect that next year we can go too. This time our boys will represent us. Although we come from a small village, we will be able to prove ourselves... one day.”
