Practiced 36 months for 4 years, in minus 25 degree Celsius to reach Olympics: Kashmir’s Arif Khan

Khan attributed his success to his father Yaseen Khan, a ski operator, who introduced him to skiing when he less than 10-year-old

Arif Khan, 31, a Valley youth who is all set to represent India during the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics next year, skied for eight to nine months a year consistently for the last four years and practiced in minus 20-25 degree Celsius to make it to the coveted sports competition.

In an exclusive interview to The Hindu from Europe, Khan, son of a ski tour operator from hilly pocket of north Kashmir’s Baramulla, said he has been preparing for the last four years to realize his dream to participate in Olympics. He won the spot for India in Alpine Skiing at the Entry League FIS event in Dubai in November this year.

“It takes physical fitness, ability to be quick at turns between the gates, while going down the icy slopes in speed. I ski eight to nine months a year. In Gulmarg, I can ski just three or four months because of the change in snow conditions. One of the most challenging parts of this sport is severe cold, and training in minus 20 or minus 25 degrees Celsius,” Mr. Khan, who hails from Tangmarg hill station that is adjacent to the Valley’s famous ski resort of Gulmarg in north Kashmir, said.