Aanchal Thakur, 21, created history when she won the first international medal for India in skiing.
She took home the bronze in the Alpine Ejder 3200 Cup organised by the international skiing federation at the Palandoken Ski Centre in Erzurum in Turkey on Tuesday. The Himachal Pradesh native clinched the medal in the slalom race category.
Aanchal, a resident of Burua, a small village in Manali, is the daughter of the secretary general of the Winter Games Federation of India. She picked up the sport from her father Roshan Thakur, before working with Olympian Heera Lal, according to a report in The Times of India.
“This is a breakthrough for the sport in India and the entire skiing fraternity is proud of her achievement,” Roshan Thakur told TOI after her win. She has so far been financed by her father or FIS for her trips at times.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Sports Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore also congratulated Aanchal on Twitter.
The 21-year-old has previously represented India at the 2012 Winter Youth Olympics in Innsbruck and also took part in the Alpine skiing – Girl’s Slalom and Girl’s Giant Slalom events, according to the Financial Express.
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