Sailing to Tokyo: 'Michael Ballack' fan KC Ganapathy looking to make a mark at first Olympics
KC Ganapathy found his first love in sailing when he was nearly seven but did play football during his school days
It will be a historic first for the Indian sailing contingent as four sailors across three events are set to represent the country in Tokyo 2020.
And among the Indian sailors at Tokyo 2020 will be KC Ganapathy who made the cut for Tokyo 2020 with his partner Varun Thakkar in the 49er event after finishing top at the Mussanah Open Sailing Championships in Oman recently.
"We (Ganapathy and Varun Thakkar) were over the moon. It was (reward for) solid hard work of 10-12 years. Both of us left school and literally trained throughout the year apart from (the days) when we were injured or on holiday," Ganapathy told the Olympic Channel.
"So, we are really grateful, over the moon and want to work hard to improve. Just relieved because the last race (in Oman) was really tight and we (thought) we didn't sail well but managed to finish the job," he added.
Ganapathy revealed that he used to be drawn towards football in his school days and he also did a fair amount of cycling.
"My dad (who passed away a few years ago) owned a furniture company. I always liked to work in the workshop like cutting wood. But growing up in school, I used to play a lot of football and did a fair amount of cycling," he recalled.
The Chennai-based sailor is a fan of Premier League outfit Chelsea. In fact, he followed the Blues after former German midfielder Michael Ballack joined the London club in 2006 from Bayern Munich.
"I was always a Michael Ballack fan, the German captain in the 2006 World Cup, he was playing for Chelsea at that time. So I probably continue to support them because of that reason," Ganapathy added.
Sailing was, however, Ganapathy's first love after his first encounter with the discipline came when he was nearly seven. And over the years, he has developed himself as one of the finest Indian sailors.
And he has continuously strived to improve his co-ordination with his 49er partner Thakkar.
Their story goes a long way back to 2006, when the duo were competing against each other before they decided to form a team in 2011. They took the decision as their height and weight was not suitable for a single-person boat.
"We started sailing together in 2011. But prior to that, we have been racing against each other since 2006. The single-handed boat called optimist is the one we started with and then we had an option to sail in laser or opt for the double-handed boat called 49er.
"Single-handed boat requires like 6ft plus height and 83kgs body weight because it's our body weight which balances the boat. So, we found the double-handed boat because I'm around 5'7" and Varun is around 5'9" and the single-handed boat was not an option for us," Ganapathy explained.
"It's been a great journey. In fact, our co-ordination is really good, because sometimes he (Varun Thakkar) is thinking of a song in his head and then sings it out loud and then I would sing the same song. We are together so much, continuously traveling, doing events. We are very much in sync," he added.
In fact, their co-ordination and understanding helped them earn a bronze medal at the 2018 Asian Games. And now with Tokyo 2020 approaching, Ganapathy believes that his team will be underdogs going into the 49er event, but will look to finish in top 10.
"Basically, it is the pinnacle of sport, and will be a phenomenal experience. We are going with low expectations because we are one of the underdogs for sure. You never know what can happen on that given day. But if you look at the realistic approach, with the training time available, I would say the top 10 will be really good," Ganapathy said.
Ganapathy and Thakkar have also decided to train in the last few months ahead of Tokyo 2020 in Portugal, where strong winds and big waves will make the atmosphere like Enoshima Yacht Harbour -- the venue for the sailing event at the Games.
"Our plan is to leave for Portugal on May 1. All the top sailors are training near Lisbon, the waves from the Atlantic (Ocean), the wind and everything nearly matches Enoshima in Tokyo. Its probably going to be a strong wind big wave event. All the top boats are training there. We intend to train there and working on visa and the other processes," Ganapathy said.