Rourkela, June 21: As a javelin thrower she was once a name to reckon with in the state and beyond. But today, life is altogether a different story for Juletha Minz, who once brought glory to the state.
Away from the life of track and field, she leads a life in complete anonymity at Gundipara village under Lakshmiposh near Rajgangpur, nearly 60km from here.
"One day at my school, I simply picked up and threw the discuss, that too, just for fun. But, it went to such a distance that my PT teacher got surprised. I was a student of St Mary's School in Sundargarh," said Minz.
That discuss throw was her initiation into the sports. Gradually, Minz proved her mettle in all kinds of throwing events and also in 200 metres. "But, my sports teacher told me to concentrate on javelin only, and I remained glued to it," she recalled.
Minz's parents, who used to stay at a resettlement colony, Jalda C block, of the Rourkela Steel Plant, had sent her to Sundargarh as study was free there. However, she started performing well in school events and got a chance to represent the district in 1968. Minz bagged gold in the event. Later, her performance with the javelin shot her into limelight. "My teacher asked me to shift to Rourkela, and I moved out," said Minz.
Now, she does not remember the full name of her coach, at times not even the years of her success. Only the innumerable certificates stand mute testimony of her achievements.
Between, 1969 and 1973, she bagged six state gold medals, and five silver medals and one gold medal at the national level. She had undergone two national camps at Patiala for javelin, but could never go anywhere else. Besides, she was a permanent member of the Rourkela Steel Plant's sports team and brought accolades to the steel plant. However, like her many contemporaries, she never got the chance to join the steel plant under the sports quota.
Minz, however, has neither complaints nor regret. She is managing her life with husband Julius Ekka and son Santosh, a science graduate. "I have got whatever God had kept for me, so I do not regret or fret over what I have missed."
For sometime she worked as home guards. "I told her that I can take care of you, leave the job," said Ekka. Interestingly in 1973, after one year of her marriage, Ekka discovered Minz's credentials. "It was one day when I was cleaning this small house I found these in her trunk," he said.
But, she is very possessive about her earnings from her exploits. She has not thrown away the medals and the certificates. They may not be properly kept but preserved with sincerity, though time is catching up with those, as she does not know how to manage these.
Today, she lives in a tiled house at Gundipara. Her Indira Awas home is incomplete, as she does not have funds to put the roof over it. She has a pond adjacent to her home in which she grows fishes, both for fun and livelihood. On her husband's nearly three-and-a-half acres of land, they grow seasonal vegetables.
"If I keep asking for more, there is no limit to it. I am happy with the little that I have," said Minz. But, the frustration is still there, as she said: "I told my son 'no games' when he joined school."
