Sreeshankar Murali , the 23 year old from Palakkad district is the only second male long jumper from the country to win a CWG medal. On Saturday he took a best effort of 0.08m in Brimingham . In his circuit he is ever smiling and one of the most amicable athletes. His dedication ,focus ,efforts have gained him a good reputation among top stars like Neeraj Chopra and even among former players. “We are lucky to have a son like Shanku. He is so humble and respectful to everyone and that is the reason he has come so far. He’s been like this since school. We’ve never had any trouble with him,” says mother K. S. Bijimol, a former 800m runner herself. His father Murali is his coach who says “He never shies away from hard work. He never finds excuses or shortcuts. I rarely have to raise my voice at him,”
The winner does not listen to music while training for concentration. Television watching not allowed for his entire family after 11:00. Only when he turned 18 he was allowed to access social media platforms like facebook etc. He took all the restrictions in his stride as he believes his father knows the best. He has concentrated on his studies too simultaneously. He makes it a point to carry his study materials wherever he goes. He has scored above 95% in 10th and 12th grade. He secured second place in NEET exams on sports quota and cleared engineering. “Many of my friends who were in athletics with me are jobless now. He has to focus on his studies as well to ensure a secure future. This is how it works in India,” Murali says. But he has plans to take up Bsc Maths. He has a sister Shreepathy who says “He never fights with anyone, at home or outside, apart from me. We just have silly sibling arguments but he is very nice to me”. She has now moved to Trivandrum to pursue medicine and says “We watch all of his events together. He calls me on video sometimes and says hello to my friends as well. Because of him, I am getting popular”.
