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Shikarawalla Mohsin sets Khelo India Water Sports Festival alive with dream gold
The Statesman Kolkata
|August 22, 2025
From rowing a Shikara across the shimmering waters of Dal Lake to standing tall as a national champion, 17-year-old Mohsin Ali Kand has scripted a fairytale rise that has electrified Jammu and Kashmir.
On Thursday, the teenager delivered a golden moment for the Union Territory, clinching the very first gold medal of the Khelo India Water Sports Festival 2025 in the men's 1000m Kayaking event with a timing of 4:12:717.
As Mohsin pulled his kayak to the shore, the air at Dal Lake erupted with cheers. Overwhelmed by the weight of his achievement, he broke down in tears and embraced his coach, Bilquis Mir, a former international and Olympic judge.
A student of Class 12 at SP Higher Secondary School, Mohsin juggles academics with dawn-to-dusk training and late evenings rowing a Shikara to earn money for his nutrition.
Son of a humble carpenter, Fida Hussain Kand, Mohsin dedicated the medal to his father's endless support.
"It was my father who was instrumental in my decision to take up water sports," Mohsin said.
This story is from the August 22, 2025 edition of The Statesman Kolkata.
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