Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], June 6 : Argentinian Nabila Sol Barraza comes from the same village as the legendary footballer Lionel Messi and follows the beautiful game with passion.
On the other hand, Singapore's Nathaniel Tan Leong An is a network engineer by profession.
Despite their varied backgrounds and cultures, Barraza and Nathaniel are united by their love for Yogasana, an ancient Indian tradition that is fast evolving as a competitive sport and has already caught the imagination of the world, according to a press release.
The inaugural World Yogasana Championships, currently underway at the EKA Arena in Ahmedabad, has attracted over 400 athletes from over 60 countries, and the electric atmosphere created by the participants, ranging from a 13-year-old to a 55-year-old, displaying their core strength and flexibility, has definitely boosted the sport's Olympic ambitions.
Driven by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's desire to provide Yogasana a global platform and open a pathway to Olympic inclusion, the inaugural World Yogasana Championships have received overwhelming support from not just the Indian athletes but also from practitioners across the globe who have been enamoured by the rich heritage of yoga.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Prime Minister had termed Yogasana "India's timeless gift to humanity", and the participants were unanimous in accepting that yoga had helped them achieve mindfulness and calm in their day-to-day life.
Barraza, who has won a pair of gold and silver in the competition so far, insisted that competing in the World Championship was an unparalleled experience.
"I think this event is a major platform for sharing yoga with the world, and the organisers have done a fantastic job. I picked up yogasana during my stint in India when I was trying to make a career as a dancer in Bollywood. But I got fascinated by yoga and learnt it in Nashik and Rishikesh before returning to Argentina. The experience of competing in such events will only contribute to the development of the sport in my country, and I am very happy that I could win medals," said the only Argentine athlete here.
Singapore's Nathaniel, who became the first non-Indian athlete to win a gold medal at the world yoga championships here when he topped the Traditional Yogasana gold, insisted that yogaasana was extremely popular in the city-state as a form of fitness and mindfulness.
"This world championship has been a special experience for me and the entire contingent. We have been making friends and receiving guidance from other participants, and I am confident that there will be many more participants in future competitions," he added.
Ameya Krishna B, who was born in India but is representing the Netherlands, speaks about how 'yogasana' is considered synonymous with 'India' in European nations and insists that the World Championships will finally kick-start a process of standardisation of yoga practices across the globe.
"I think there are over 200 registered Yoga centres (in the Netherlands). But most of them have mixed it up with body-conditioning workouts. The inaugural World Yogasana Championships is therefore an excellent initiative to finally bring some standardisation in all the various asanas while also bringing a competitive element to it," said Ameya, who is a scientist by profession and has been practising yoga for over two decades.
Another Indian-origin athlete, Chetnaa Reesaul of Mauritius, claims that it was only because of the world championships that she got an opportunity to travel outside the African island nation.
"Yogasana has caught the attention of many people in Mauritius, and we are even going to celebrate Yoga Day in our schools on June 18, and inter-school competitions will be held on that day. Competing in the world championships has also given us an opportunity to learn about the culture and practices in different countries, and that was a very enriching experience," she added.