At five-and-half years Shyam Sumanth Heblekar of Kaiga Township in Karwar is like any other boy of his age. He is mischievous, playful and naughty and is bubbling with oodles of energy. He also likes to play with other boys of his age. Still, Shyam is different from other children of his age because, at this tender age, he is already a celebrity.
This ‘little champion’ as his coach Dilip Hanbar of Kaiga Roller Skating Club addresses him, has his name written in five major “Book of Records” on June 3, 2018, for his accomplishments in Stilt Skating. Shyam’s stupendous achievement was walking 2 km at 10 km per hour with a skate-to-head height of 72 inches wooden legs (3½ feet stilts with skates). Shyam also got his name in record books for the longest backward stilt skating wherein he walked 650 meters backwards on stilt skates of the same height. He also skated 500 meters while standing on 87-inch wooden legs to create his third record.
At Kaiga Township, Shyam is treated like a hero following his incredible performance. While most other boys of his age play with toys, for Shyam, his roller skates are his toys he loves the most. “Playing’ with his favourite roller skates has fetched him handsome rewards catapulting him to instant celebrity status apart from finding a place in the Book of Records. He tasted public adulation and glory as one of the 32 participants of Kaiga Roller Skating Club that had created Limca Book of Records in Limbo Skating in May 2018 by skating continuously for 90 minutes. This was just a month before his individual records on June 3, 2018.
Being young, Shyam wears his celebrity status crown with ease, oblivious of his own achievements and the celeb status that has come with it. With some of his milk teeth still intact, he gives an impish but captivating smile when asked about his records in Skating. The child-like innocence does not go unnoticed even when he says, “My sister Durga was skating and after watching her, I wanted to skate and then joined the club”, in response to the query on how he got to know about skating. Durga represented Karnataka State in Roller Skating championship and it was she who proved to be his initial inspiration to take up skating. Needless to say, Shyam took to skating like fish to the water even before he had attained the age of 3 on his own volition.
“When other children were learning to walk Shyam was skating and trying to balance his body on stilts. Initially, he started practising at home holding the wall, sofa and windows”, says a proud mother Pooja Heblekar. After the initial lessons at home under the watchful eyes of his mother, Shyam joined the Kaiga Roller Skating Club to train under Coach Dilip Hanbar. It was Dilip who spotted his talent and suggested his parents try Shyam in Stilt Skating as he felt that the kid had the talent as also the mental equilibrium.
It was mother Pooja Heblekar who took the advice of the coach seriously and began to train him under her watchful eyes. “Initially we had only one-foot height stilts and he began moving with my assistance holding the sofa, the wall and the windows. Slowly we went on increasing the height finally stopping at 3 ½ feet. When the height increased, I could not give him support and then his dad took over. It is not easy to skate balancing the body on stilts. But for Shyam, it was like a child’s play and he was not scared of the height.” Only when Shyam felt confident, he was taken to the skating hall for further practice”, Pooja says.
It has taken two to three hours of regular practice daily both in the morning and evening for Shyam to perfect his skill in stilt skating. Apart from physical training, Shyam had to be prepared mentally to take up the big challenge of preparing for the records. The parents and the coach told him about the recognition and public adulation received by Priyadarshini, another member of the club who had created Limca Book of Records in Limbo skating a year earlier. They also enticed him saying his name would come in papers and TV Channels and his relatives and grandparents would be proud. “Even then it is not easy”, says Pooja because “children have a lot of mood swings and unless Shyam made up his mind our persuasion would be an exercise in futility.” Shyam also had to forego eating his favourite ice-cream for 6 months as part of his preparation for the records.
Shyam’s father Sumanth Heblekar, who is employed at Kaiga Power Station, says as parents they did not put any pressure on Shyam. Recalling an incident, he says, “Once Shyam fell during a practice and began to cry. Both my wife and I decided that we should discontinue the sport and not to subject him to such discomforts and dangers. However, Shyam insisted on continuing the practice and we had to relent.” Officials from all the major three Books of Records had come personally to witness the record making feet of Shyam Heblekar. Inviting officials for such records involve expenditure and Heblekars had made elaborate arrangements including paying necessary fees and arranging the stay of the officials at the Company’s guest house at Kaiga. For paying the fees, the Roller Skating Club succeeded in getting required the sponsorship.
Now Shyam is practising for speed skating and has also set his eyes on practising skateboard. For the time being, his practice is restricted to the 4 walls of the house. Once the rain stops, he has plans to practise skateboard on the streets of Kaiga Township.
Sumanth says, “Shyam has expressed his desire to take coaching in games like cricket and football. Considering his young age, it is natural to get attracted to different kinds of sports and games. His parents, however, insist that they will support Shyam whatever sports he opts for.
