The athletes from Himalayan Kingdom were optimistic, saying the new government in Nepal would improve sports facilities so that aspiring youngsters are able to achieve their goals.

Navneet Singh 

Nepal’s 16-year-old national junior sprint champion, Pravin Rana, was one of the school going students who flooded the streets of Kathmandu to protest against the government during civil unrest in 2025 September.

Driven by passion to join the protest, Rana saw death at close quarters on day one of the protest in September last. A school student from his group was shot dead. The tragic incident still haunts him. “One of the students in my group was shot dead in front of my eyes. He was profusely bleeding. I was clueless how to help him as it was a chaotic situation all over. When I think of that day, it sends shivers down my spine,” Rana told Sportsbackstory.com.

Narrow escape

Rana says a bullet grazed close to his body. He was lucky to escape. “I still can’t believe that I escaped unhurt,” he recalls.

More than 70 people, including students, died during the protest in Nepal. But Rana had a narrow escape and was one of the athletes who competed at the fourth edition of SAAF (South Asian Athletics Federation) Championship held in October last in Ranchi, Jharkhand. Apart from host India, athletes from Bhutan, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh participated in a three-day event that attracted 200 competitors.

Lack of facilities

Rana’s main grudge was inadequate facilities which hampered his progress and he wasn’t able to pursue his goals to excel in sports. To vent his anger, the teenager joined the protest. The civil unrest, Rana told Sportsbackstory.com, was a good opportunity to air views against alleged corruption and nepotism. “I joined the protest last year as I was unhappy with the sports facilities I was getting,” says the school going sprinter.

School going athlete

Hailing from Lalitpur on the outskirts of Nepal’s Capital, the 11th class student practices with a group of athletes in Kathmandu. But lamented lack of facilities at the training venue.

Sprinters from Nepal weren’t successful in winning medals in the South Asian meet held in India in 2025. The Nepal athletes claimed their training got disrupted due to the unrest in the country.

Rana clocked 11.42 seconds to finish fifth in his 100m heat. Top four in each heat progressed to the medal round. Running on borrowed spikes, Rana says he doesn’t have financial support to buy a new pair. His father, a small-time shopkeeper, passed away last year in July. Rana’s mother has taken over the responsibility to run the shop. His three years old brother goes to a local kindergarten. “It’s tough life back home,” Rana adds.

Passion for sports  

Rana has been passionate about sports. He did skateboarding and cycling before switching to sprinting. “I got a medal in sprinting in a school meet. It motivated me to do better and compete in international competitions,” the teenager from Nepal says. “But it is difficult situation as there aren’t good facilities or financial support from the government.”

Despite struggle, Rana is optimistic, saying the new government in Nepal will be better for people who don’t have adequate resources in the field of sports to pursue their goals. “I feel the new government will improve the facilities for young athletes in future,” he adds.

Sprinted to save his life

Another Nepal sprinter, Shivraj Parki, an employee of the Nepal army too had to go through harrowing time during the protest in September. Parki is the 100m/200m champion in the senior group in Nepal. According to Parki he was on duty at a police station in Kathmandu when a mob attacked the post. “Being in the army uniform, I was the target of the mob. It was a challenging task to control hundreds of agitating people. Being a sprinter, I managed to escape unhurt from the scene,” Parki says of running away from a dangerous situation.

Running spikes

Parki hails from Dhangarhi, a small town near Nepal-India border in Uttar Pradesh. Parki recently saved money to get a pair of running spikes. “I’m earning around Rs 25,000 (in Nepal currency). With meagre resources it becomes a challenging job to take care of family and pursue sports,” he claims.

Parki finished seventh in the men’s 100m final with a time of 11.07 seconds. Eventual winner Chamod Yodasinghege of Sri Lanka clocked 10.30 seconds to win gold. Parki was also a member of Nepal’s 4x100m men relay team that finished fifth with a time of 42.87 seconds. 

Uphill task

Nepal sprinters faced an uphill task in the South Asian meet in Ranchi, but middle and long distance runners managed to collect two silver and four bronze medals.  “We hope the new government will revamp sports facilities in the country,” says Parki.

EOM