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Kalimpong, Jan. 15: The lack of proper equipment and guidance has not stopped participants from the hill town from bringing back medals from the 17th West Bengal State Taekwondo Championship held at Salt Lake earlier this month.

The 17-member team from Kalimpong Gorkha Hill Council Taekwondo Federation brought back two gold, one silver and six bronze medals from the state-level championship. Arpan Gurung and Yangchen Dolma Bhutia bagged the gold medals, while Dawa Tamang won the silver medal. All three are nineteen years old.

“Their performance is highly commendable considering the lack of infrastructure here for the sport. They do not have a proper place to practice and they are also without the guidance of a proper instructor who knows the new techniques and rules of the game,” said Sherap Lepcha, a senior member and instructor of the federation.

According to Lepcha the sport was initiated in India through the federation here in 1975. “During those days, we used to dominate at the national-level meets. Now, states like Manipur, Delhi, Maharashtra and Sikkim fare better as they have access to better facilities,” he added.

Federation members rued the lack of protective gear for head, chest and chin. There is also a shortage of practice equipment like kicking pads and mats, they said.

“With proper equipment, we could have done much better as there is no dearth of potential among the youths here. When we participate in the games, we have to borrow the equipment from the other participants. Moreover, the competitions are held on mats, making it difficult for our participants who practise on cemented floors,” said Lepcha.