Speaking exclusively to Sportskeeda, Payal said:
Uttarakhand’s 22-year-old race walker from a village near Kashipur recalled she didn’t get good coaching during her school and college days either.
The national bronze medalist said she had to travel 12 km from her village to Kashipur for practice. Considering she sacrificed her academics it wasn’t productive in terms of performance.
Change in location has helped Payal
In January last year, Payal shifted from Kashipur to Patiala to pursue a course in Bachelor of Physical Education from Punjabi University.
At the Punjabi University Campus, Payal came in contact with former national level race walking coach Gurdev Singh, who has a training center at Punjabi University. Shifting to Patiala has paid rich dividends, said Payal.
In Patiala, Payal also has the advantage of training with a group of athletes. She highlighted that group training for an event like 20km is vital for improving performance. Last week’s podium finish in the season-ending domestic competition in Warangal was a big boost for Payal.. She said:
Payal won a silver medal in the B group at the National Race Walk Championships held earlier this year in Ranchi. To avoid overcrowding and streamline the national race walk competition, the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) divides competitors into two groups according to their performance.
The elite athletes are clubbed in A group while the second rung competes in B group. In Warangal there was only one group.
Payal’s personal best for a 20km race walk is one hour and 40 minutes. Last week in Warangal she clocked an hour and 48 minutes to win bronze. Her next goal is to compete in the elite group for the 2022 season.
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