Wrestler's hold on ambition

By Craig Ross

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

The Cairns Post

JASPREET Singh wants to be the best he can be, but the Cairns wrestler needs a qualified coach to help him reach his potential.

Singh, 21, who does much of his training in a shed on his coach Gurinder Mavi’s Tully banana farm, captured the 96kg division title at the annual Australian Sikh Games in Brisbane this month.

He defeated Gurdeep Singh, an opponent he described as strong and difficult to beat, to claim the prize but hopes to take his wrestling talents further.

Mavi, who admits to limited ability as a coach, oversees the development of a small group of wrestlers from the Cairns region’s young Sikh community.

But he is hopeful the group could be incorporated into a club if other members of the public were interested in taking up the sport and he is keen to hear from any qualified coaches in the region.

For Singh, who moved from the state of Punjab in India to Cairns with his family a year ago, finding a qualified coach is imperative to his dreams of becoming a top-class wrestler.

The powerfully built athlete has been wrestling since the age of 13, learning an Indian variation of the Greco-Roman style of the sport on both dirt and mats in his childhood.

Singh strongly conveys his deep desire to improve as an athlete.

"I want to try to go to the top," he said. "I train every day.

"I do push-ups, running, weight lifting and climbing rope."

Singh also sticks to a high protein diet as part of his training regimen, powering through milk products, almonds, meat and dietary supplements.

He is preparing for the Australia Cup event at the Melbourne Aquatic Centre on May 22-23.

Anyone willing to help Singh with his coaching or assist in the creation of a club, can phone Gurinder Mavi on 0410 662 459.