Born in the drought-prone village of Talegoan, Maharashtra, it was destiny that brought Dattu and rowing together. Dattu pushed himself against the tide to not only be India’s sole rower to qualify for the 2016 Rio Olympics , but also finish in 13th place - the highest ever position achieved by an Indian rower in the history of the Olympic Games.
His father was a farmer and a well-digger and from the tender age of 9, Dattu set out to help him break stones and lift huge boulders. He would often toil for 8 hours every day, under the hot sun, to afford his meals. Young Dattu did not even know back then what the Olympic Games were, let alone the sport of rowing.
His tough childhood however gave him natural physical strength and endurance as well as mental toughness, which athletes usually take years to develop. In its own way destiny was preparing Dattu for a future in sports.
After the tragic death of his father, Dattu worked at a petrol pump and earned Rs. 3000 - Rs. 4000 per month, which wasn’t enough to support his family. To improve his financial condition, he enrolled into the army and whilst in training, all the cadets were called for an assessment of their physical parameters, as part of the standard army protocol. Owing to his tall and broad built, Dattu was recommended for their sporting division and rowing; he was afraid of water and didn’t know how to swim then.
But, what was facilitated by luck was furthered by sheer hard work. Dattu was still unaware of the magnanimity of an event like the Olympics, but was putting in hours of training towards it anyway. He had found a natural talent for the sport and proved his mettle by winning 4 gold medals in inter-battalion rowing competition, followed by 2 golds in the National Rowing Competitions. He went on to represent India at the 2014 Asian Games in Korea, where he finished 5th, and the subsequent year won silver medal at the 2015 Asian Championships in China.
The qualification to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio came as a surprise to Dattu who because of lack of funds did not have access to sufficient exposure to international competitions. He won a gold in the qualifying event for Rio, making him one of the top medal contenders. However, a personal tragedy struck at the wrong time - Dattu’s mother fell off the back of the motorcycle his brother was riding and hit on her head on the road, severely injuring herself. She was admitted in the army hospital, Pune and was in coma as Dattu made the tough decision to compete for his country in Rio, despite his mother’s condition. Under severe emotional stress, Dattu still managed to give a brilliant performance by covering 2000m in 7 minutes; only 6 seconds behind the 3rd finisher! He ranked 13 overall - breaking a record for the country in Rowing for the best ever finish by an Indian rower at the Olympic Games!
Dattu achieved this with only 4 years of exposure to the sport and only 6 months of focused training for the Olympics! In his interview with India Today, he says that the chief reason he lost was because he didn’t practice rowing sideways with strong winds, something others had experience with:
"Missing out on a medal was disappointing. But I have gone where no Indian has before. I have changed things and there is more to change. Give me three years more and I will get India a medal.”
Dattu’s mother unfortunately eventually passed away towards the end of 2016 and he is currently training 4 hours each day in Pune, working his way towards a medal winning performance at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo! However, several challenges lie ahead on his endeavour to succeed at the Olympic Games, including:
1) 2018 Asian Games in Indonesia - Having finished 5th in 2014, Dattu is expected to be amongst one of the strong medal contenders this time
2) 2019 Asian Championships and World Championships - Both these events will help Dattu assess himself against his counterparts from Asia and across the World ahead of the all-important Tokyo Olympics in 2020
3) 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games – The biggest test; can Dattu do even better and become India’s first medalist in Rowing?
He had earlier travelled to Miami prior to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio and benefitted tremendously from exposure to the high-performance training and facilities there, resulting eventually in his 13th place finish.
Dattu wishes to travel to the USA for 2-month stints prior to his major competitions in 2018, 2019 and eventually before the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, to give himself the best possible chance of winning a medal there.
To get the best training in Miami, Dattu needs a total of Rs. 16,00,000.
Here’s how you can empower Dattu:
1) Fund Dattu’s by contributing generously to this fundraiser
2) Share the fundraiser with your friends and family on social media, Whatsapp or email
3) Start a Support Fundraiser to pool in money from your friends, family, colleagues and others in your network
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