Eight-year old Kashmiri girl Tajamul Islam made history on Tuesday by winning the gold medal in the sub-junior category at the World Kickboxing Championship in Italy. The second grader won a total of six games during the five-day long championship, in which 90 countries had participated.
"I am happy that I won and I am proud of it. I want to appeal to all the Indian parents to support their children and encourage them and motivate them towards sports," she said in an interview with ANI.
She had warm words for her coach Master Fasil Ali.
Speaking to Times Now, Tajamul said, "I feel really good about this. This happened when my Sir started an academy in Kashmir and I joined it. My brother and sister took me there and then, I started practicing. I participated in the state and national level competitions and won gold in both. Sir helped me a lot in my training and now I have won the World Championship. I am really happy."
"I practiced with all my heart and then I won gold. I used to watch kickboxing on TV and was initially afraid of breaking my nose and what my father would think about it. Then, my siblings started encouraging me and took me to a stadium where I submitted the admission form for the academy. When I first went for state level, I was very scared but my Sir encouraged me and motivated me," she said.
"I was a bit worried when I went for the World Championship because there were players who had played at the international level before, but then I thought about Kashmir, about India, and how it was about everyone and not just me," she said.
Tajamul dedicated her win to her coach and her parents who motivated and supported her throughout the Championship.
Also on HuffPost India.
