Dika-thlon: Inspiring generations

GOLD COAST : Papua New Guinea, tucked in the South-western fringes of the Pacific, is known for beautiful beaches, cultural diversity, coral reefs... and one Loa Dika Toua — a mother of two, four-time Olympian, iconoclast and an inspiration behind a new generation of athletes back home, especially women. The narrative of her life borders on the surreal.The celebrations continued on the lawns of the Carrara Sports Arena here on Friday. Tears of joy ran down Dika’s face as she stepped on the podium. They did not stop when she walked through numerous fans waiting outside the hall, amidst vociferous chants of Dika, Dika, Dika! She was emotional, but she had every right to be. After all, Dika had just won silver behind India’s Sanjita Chanu in 53kg weightlifting.

Hers is an outrageously familiar Indian story of a woman athlete trying to etch her name in a male-dominated sport. Back home in Papua New Guinea, her story is compared to that of the Phogat sisters’ as captured in the biopic Dangal. Dika’s grandfather John Dawanincura has watched it. “The movie reminds me of her initial struggle,” he says.Dika had a humble beginning. At the age of 10, she was fascinated by the sport when she visited a local gym under a tree in Hanuabada, a coastal village near Port Moresby. It was difficult to get weightlifting gear, let alone training. Even now gear is expensive and needs to be imported.

“She used to visit the local gym where not many women went,” says her father Toua, quietly standing in one corner as his daughter soaked in the adulation. “From there, she started competing and winning medals.” She shifted to Oceania Weightlifting Institute in Noumea, New Caledonia and became the first woman lifter to compete at the Olympics when the sport was introduced in 2000. Sydney is still fresh in her mind: “I still can (remember Sydney Olympics). I was only 16 years old and was the first lifter to come out. I was so nervous. It’s been a long way since and everything has turned out well.”

The 33-year-old’s initiation and struggle to become a successful weightlifter has an uncanny resemblance to the Phogats’ story. “When I started, women were not pursuing lifting,” she says. “I had to be one of them to break the barriers.”“I had to go on and inspire weightlifters, particularly women. We have traditions as well.” Her sister Thelma too is a lifter and missed out on a bronze on Thursday. “I’m glad that a lot of women, not just in weightlifting, had children and still came to train. That’s great and I am proud to be one of the mothers,” she says.

A great supporter of gender equality in sports, she advocates equality in sports administration. “Recently gender equality has been spoken about a lot. When this (same number of medals for men and women in Commonwealth Games) happens, it shows that this sport has gender equality. If (women) athletes are equal to men on the platform, I’m sure it will change on the administrative side of weightlifting as well.”Being a mother is not easy. Dika needs to stay away from her two children for months. “To be honest, I’ve only had the children but it’s my parents and my in-laws, my family who have been taking care of them. But that’s a sacrifice I have to make. I miss them a lot. But they were in the crowd cheering for me today.” But for her, lifting is life. “Lifting comes first. Once I am done, I have my family here, so I can spend as much time as I can with them.”

She runs an academy and is lucky to get sponsors and grants now and then. “I am coaching as well. In between, I am looking after my family, studying, coaching as well as other things,” she says.Four Olympics later, Dika is now aiming for Tokyo. “I’m in an Olympic Scholarship programme so my focus is on the Tokyo Olympics. It’s not just the CWG I’ve been to. I’ve been to the Olympics, World Championships, Asian Championships and every time I come home, be it with or without a medal, it inspires kids and women. If I can do it, they can too. And I encourage them and tell them that God has a plan for every individual.”Dika’s plan is to carry on as long as possible and when the time comes, give back to the sport which has given her so much.
indraneel.das@newindianexpress.com