Mohammad Shahid Bashir belongs to Hadura in the Ganderbal district of Jammu and Kashmir. His story began in childhood when he discovered a natural talent for sports. What started as school-level trials quickly transformed into something remarkable. Selected for district competitions, he progressed to state level and eventually represented his region at national platforms. Over the years, Shahid participated in 14 national competitions and two international events. His passion grew with each match, and at one point, he considered leaving formal education to pursue sports full-time. However, circumstances in the region forced him to reconsider his position.
He chose to balance both academics and athletics, a decision that would later shape his approach to coaching young athletes. This dual commitment taught him valuable lessons about discipline and perseverance. His playing career earned him recognition as Man of the Series at a national level event, which opened doors to international competitions abroad. These experiences gave him firsthand knowledge of what it takes to succeed in competitive sports. Today, those years of playing across different formats and levels form the foundation of his coaching philosophy. He understands the struggles young athletes face because he lived through them himself.
Building Dreams One Athlete at a Time
Shahid has trained nearly 1,000 young athletes over the past five years. Among them, 20 to 30 students participate in national competitions every year. His approach goes beyond technical training. He works on building the right mindset in his students, believing that mental preparation is just as important as physical skills. Many of his students come from small villages where sports opportunities are limited. He travels to their homes when necessary, offering free training without charging any fees. His students have excelled in various disciplines, including cricket, football, volleyball, kho-kho, judo, karate, taekwondo, boxing, kickboxing, and chess.
The diversity of sports he teaches reflects his versatile athletic background. Female athletes have particularly benefited from his guidance. In areas where families traditionally discouraged girls from pursuing sports, Shahid convinced parents by explaining the benefits of doing so. Several girls he trained have gone on to win gold medals at national competitions. One notable success story is Tajamul Islam, a young girl who competed in world-level kickboxing and gained widespread recognition. These achievements have gradually changed community attitudes toward female participation in sports.
Overcoming Challenges in a Resource-Limited Environment
Training young athletes in Ganderbal presents significant challenges. The region lacks adequate sporting infrastructure, particularly indoor facilities. While martial arts and indoor games require covered spaces, no proper indoor stadium exists nearby. The available indoor stadium is located far from his training area. Despite this limitation, Shahid conducts outdoor training sessions for indoor sports, adapting his methods to work within available resources. Ground facilities for outdoor sports are also insufficient. Yet he continues to organise regular training camps and prepare students for district, state, and national-level competitions.
His dedication compensates for what the infrastructure cannot provide. He personally guides students through selection trials at various levels. The lack of equipment and proper training venues has not deterred him from producing national-level competitors. His students have collectively won over 1,000 medals in just three years, a testament to the quality of his training despite resource constraints. Shahid believes that facilities matter, but determination and proper guidance matter more. His success proves that passionate coaching can overcome environmental limitations. Parents and students seeking his training find him through word of mouth and community networks, as his reputation has spread across the district.
The Mindset That Builds Champions
Shahid emphasises mindset development as the cornerstone of athletic success. He believes young athletes must first develop the mental conviction that they can compete and win. Without this internal drive, even the best physical training produces limited results. He teaches students to see sports not just as recreation but as a pathway to personal growth and achievement. His coaching style emphasises individual attention, particularly in martial arts, where one-on-one guidance is most effective. Martial arts attracts many of its students because it allows individual participation rather than team dependency. Students can measure their progress directly and take complete ownership of their performance.
Shahid relates to their struggles because he faced similar challenges during his own athletic career. He remembers the excitement of being selected for higher levels and the disappointment of setbacks. This empathy enables him to connect with young athletes on an emotional level. His training sessions strike a balance between physical conditioning and mental preparation. He teaches students to handle pressure during competitions and maintain focus under challenging conditions. The results speak for themselves. Multiple national gold medallists from Ganderbal credit their success to his guidance. His former students often return to express gratitude for the support he provided, sometimes acknowledging that his encouragement exceeded what they received from their own families during difficult training periods.
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