Figure Skating is a sport that requires extreme focus and discipline from an individual. 17-year-old Srilaasya Vempatapu learned this at the tender age of 9 when she won a silver medal in Pair Dance at the Artistic Skating National Championship, Noida, 2012. Since, this figure skater from Visakhapatnam has notched up many more medals at multiple district-level, state-level, and national championships. Speaking with Yo! Vizag, Srilaaasya revealed her approach towards figure skating in Visakhapatnam and her goals for the future.
Recently, she won a bronze medal at the Figure Skating Championship which took place in Chandigarh from 4-8 April 2021. She also won a National-level silver medal in Couple Dance. There, she had the opportunity of meeting Padmashri Milkha Singh, who shared a few words of wisdom and asked her to keep working hard towards her goal. During the interview, she talked about her interaction with The Flying Sikh, she said that not everyone gets a chance to meet such a legendary sportsperson and conveyed that his words of advice will forever stay with her.
How it all began
Srilaasya ventured into figure skating when she was just 7 years old. Ever since she put on the figure skates for the first time, she felt at home. Hailing from Gudlavanipalem in Visakhapatnam, she has worked out the art of balancing sports and studies to reach where she is. With her parents and coaches pushing her constantly, she has risen to her true potential and become an international-level figure skater. At such an early age, she has become an inspiration to many young figure skaters in Visakhapatnam.
The hard work behind the success
Srilaasya says that she prefers to be calm and focused while figure skating. She puts all the hard yards behind the scenes at Visakhapatnam, where she follows a strict training regime as a figure skater. Her typical day comprises 30-45 minutes of basic exercises, 2 hours of practice in the morning and 3 hours of practice in the evening. All the training and exercises are done under the supervision of her coaches Mr. P. Satyanarayana (Coach of the Indian Figure Skating team) and Mr. K. Chittibabu (Coach of A.P. Artistic Skating team).
All her hard work bore fruit in 2019 when she represented India in Artistic Skating at the World Roller Games in Barcelona, Spain. When asked about this particular achievement, she revealed she felt nervous in the beginning but managed to overcome it and do well at the tournament. She considers it a proud moment for her to represent India at the international level, a moment that she aspires to have multiple times in her life.
Looking at the future
After winning medals at various national-level competitions, Srilaasya’s next goal is to win a medal for India at the international level. Through this, she hopes to make her country as well as her parents proud. When asked who she wants to credit for her achievements so far, she regarded her parents and her coaches as the true reason behind her success.
The whole of Vizag is proud of you, Srilaasya, and we hope you win many more medals in figure skating.
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