A warm reception awaited Naga wrestler Venuzo Dawhuo when he reached his native village, Thenyizu, under Phek district of Nagaland on Thursday.
The residents at Thenyizu village, located about 120 km from Dimapur, threw a reception for Dawhuo who arrived from the United States after winning the Chin Youth Organization of North America (CYONA) wrestling title earlier on 3 July by defeating Chin champion Mang C Lian in a special challenger match at the 12th CYONA in Bloomington, Indianapolis, United States.
In fact, the villagers along with the Thenyizu Village Council and the Thenyizu Social Welfare Youth Organization travelled the 120 kms to Dimapur airport on Wednesday, the 12th of July to greet the champion. Unfortunately, Dawhuo missed the flight and arrived only on Thursday, forcing some of the villagers to retreat. However, those who stayed back welcomed the wrestler at the airport and travelled with him to the village.
Dawhuo, upon reaching the village, was taken aback as he witnessed how men, women and children lined up along the streets to meet and greet him for his success.
An emotional Dawhuo later recalled how the love and support the villagers have had for him was “overwhelming.”
“I was taken aback by the warm reception accorded by the villagers. The love and support they gave me through these years is overwhelming,” he told Mokokchung Times.
Dawhuo, who always credited his success to God, shared an emotional moment with the villagers as he distributed the sweets he had brought from the States with everyone. Speaking about the CYONA, he said it was a ‘little different’ from Naga style wrestling and, therefore, it took time for him to adapt with their style of wrestling but was able to cope with it.
“Whatever you do, put God first and He will direct you and crown you with success,” he told the young aspiring wrestlers.
Dawhuo has now become a role model not only for little children but even for the parents. According to a native of Thenyizu village, parents are now encouraging their children to “eat more” in hopes of raising future champions like Dawhuo.
According to a villager, Dawhuo has demonstrated that “wrestling can be taken as a profession” and has encouraged both young and the elderly.
“The days of yore when wrestling was taken to be the means of friendship between khels and colonies have now gone beyond boundaries. Through the victory of our brother, he has proved that wrestling can be taken as a profession and it has served as an inspiration for the young and old alike since many of us have seen him evolve,” a villager said.
“We are also overjoyed because he has managed to put the name of our village and community on the wrestling map of the world while also carving out a niche for himself. God bless,” the villager added.
“We are equally happy for his success and we still wish for many more wins in future too,” another villager said, adding that they can only hope and pray that God grants him with longevity and good health so that he can compete in top levels.
However, considering the kind of reception and recognition he is receiving, when asked if he believes Nagaland may now find a future in sports and games, he responded that it is ‘complicated’ when the sportsperson is on the ‘losing side’.
“Not all sportspeople are winners; only the winners get the awards to sustain themselves in their career, so it is really complicated when we are on the losing side. When a sportsperson’s prime age is gone and we stop being winners, there is no more scope for us to earn again. So we need government support to excel in our sporting career,” he explained.
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