By Usha Wagle Gautam

Abinash Bhatt, a taekwondo player, has made a name for himself and the Nepali community in Qatar.

He received gold medal in 2011, playing for his Dojo in Korea Taekwondo Center—Qatar in 2012 at National Teams Qualification Championship. He also won the silver medal at the 2013 National Teams Qualification Under-16 Taekwondo Championship. He bagged another gold for his weight category in school taekwondo tournament.

To date, Abinash has won a total of four gold medals, three silver and three bronze medals. Many feel that there is much still to come.

Abinash came to Qatar eight years ago at the age of 10. His family and relatives would deter him from the sport, cautioning him against the dangers involved. But his father, also a Taekwondo player, supported him in his hobby. However, he did warn him not to deviate from education at the cost of the game. The game, Abinash was told by his father, must be treated as an extracurricular activity.

Armed with support from his dad, Abinash kept at it. “I struggled for five years and now I possess Black Belt II Dan,” he said.

He added that it is hard to ignore anxiety before the match. “But when the game starts, fear gradually disappears and the dream to hold the championship title follows.”

With international success on his hand, Abinash has become one of the undisputed sport icons for the Nepali community.

“I don’t play for money. I must respect my interest, but at the same time, I need to listen to my parents. Therefore, I [gave time to both] studies and taekwondo,” he said.

Abinash aspires to become an ace like Deepak Bista, a Nepali taekwondo player who won the bronze medal in the 14th Asian Games in Qatar in 2006. “His achievements are always the source of my inspiration.”

Narendra Bhatt, Abinash’s father, said, “I lacked support from my family, and ended up with family business. [But I decided to support my son] as much as I could.”

Sarita Bhatt, Abinash’s mother, said he is good with time management and knows how to prioritise tasks.

His elder sister said she has learnt much from him, like co-operation and dedication. “I hope he won’t abandon his studies and I guess he will continue to focus on both.”

Arjun Prasad Bhattarai, former president of Nepalese Engineer Association—Qatar, said, “Despite being the son of an underdeveloped nation, Abinash [has done well and] has made us all proud. I wish him success ahead.”

Abinash is currently working towards making it to the Qatari national team. But eventually he will go back to Nepal. “After my formal education, I will travel back to my home country and represent it [in taekwondo championships].”