Race walker Servin Sebastian's inspiring story: From nearly quitting four months back to winning bronze at Asian Athletics Championship

In January, Servin Sebastian was on the verge of quitting race walking. A family matter had affected his mental peace. He didn’t have the mindspace to train. Servin had decided to head back home to his village, Edayathumangalam in Tiruchirappalli in Tamil Nadu to be with his family, his army coach Ganapathi Krishnan, said.

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However, Ganapathi, a 2016 Olympian, didn’t want Servin to drop out. He counselled Servin, the gist of his message was about not wasting an opportunity to win a ‘big medal’ and bring joy to his family. Servin won his first international medal, a bronze at the Asian Athletics Championships in Gumi, South Korea. The top seven finishers bettered the meet record, Servin posted a personal best of 1 hour, 21 minutes and 14 seconds. China's Asian Games silver medallist Zhaozhao Wang (1:20:37) won gold and Japan’s Kento Yoshikawa (1:20:46) took the silver. For Ganapathi, the Asian Championships silver is a proof of Servin's potential. He’s also glad that the athlete who almost dropped out four months ago finished on the podium in Gumi. “Servin was very stressed at the start of the year because of a family issue. It was understandable. But I told him he would be making a mistake if he gave up race-walking because he had potential. I told him to go home for 10 days and return. We used to talk everyday and I tried my best to keep him motivated but at the same time lend him an ear. If he trusts a coach then he will give his 100 percent,” Ganapathi said.