top of page

By:

Correspondent

23 August 2024 at 4:29:04 pm

Olympic Speed Climbing Champion Sam Watson to Visit Mumbai

Mumbai: When Sam Watson sprints up a 15-metre wall, the world seems to slow down. The 19-year-old American speed climber, an Olympic medallist from Paris 2024 and current world-record holder at 4.64 seconds, has become the face of one of the world’s fastest-growing sports. On November 2, he will trade competition arenas for Mumbai’s High Rock in Powai, offering a rare day of workshops and conversations with India’s burgeoning community of climbers. Speed climbing, once a fringe pursuit of...

Olympic Speed Climbing Champion Sam Watson to Visit Mumbai

Mumbai: When Sam Watson sprints up a 15-metre wall, the world seems to slow down. The 19-year-old American speed climber, an Olympic medallist from Paris 2024 and current world-record holder at 4.64 seconds, has become the face of one of the world’s fastest-growing sports. On November 2, he will trade competition arenas for Mumbai’s High Rock in Powai, offering a rare day of workshops and conversations with India’s burgeoning community of climbers. Speed climbing, once a fringe pursuit of mountaineers, now stands as one of the Olympics’ most electrifying disciplines. The sport demands not just power and agility but precision measured in hundredths of a second. Watson, often hailed as the greatest speed climber of all time, has repeatedly rewritten the record books. His visit marks a milestone for India’s fledgling climbing scene. High Rock, the city’s first commercial climbing facility, opened its walls in December 2024 and has since drawn more than 10,000 enthusiasts. It represents the country’s growing fascination with vertical sports and a reflection of a global shift toward adventure and athleticism fused with technology and training science. During his visit, Sam Watson will conduct Masterclasses for both Kids and Adults, offering a rare opportunity for amateur climbers to learn directly from a global champion and experience his unmatched energy and technique up close. Watson will be joined by Matt Groom, the Official Lead Commentator for the International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC). Known as the voice of IFSC World Cups and World Championships, Groom will host a 30-minute talk at High Rock on ‘The Evolution of Climbing in Competitive Sport.’ His insights promise to provide a deep look into the transformation of climbing from niche adventure to Olympic spectacle. Event: Sam Watson, Olympic Medalist and current World Record holder at High Rock Date: November 2, 2025 Location: High Rock, Powai, Mumbai

The Shadow of His Grandpa

Updated: Nov 18, 2024

Rohit Pawar

Rohit Pawar is wedging a tough contest from Karjat-Jamkhed assembly constituency. Actually, he had won this constituency comfortably in 2019 and hence it shouldn’t have been such a tough contest for him. But many things have changed in past five years making it a big difficult for him to repeat his performance. However, still he is roaming around crisscrossing the state along with his grand uncle to campaign for other candidate fielded by the party. He wants to grow in politics like his grand uncle. He is Rohit Pawar.


Born on September 29, 1985, in Baramati Rohit Pawar contested his first election from a zilla parishad constituency near Baramati in 2017. It was at that age of 32 that the grandson of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP-SP) chief Sharad Pawar’s elder brother Appasaheb and a member of the formidable family’s fourth generation ventured into the political arena of the state. Rohit is married to Kunti, an economist, and they have two children, Anandita and Shivansh. He completed his schooling at Vidya Prathisthan, Baramati, and graduated with a Bachelor of Management Studies from the University of Mumbai in 2007.


The late Appasaheb is highly respected in Maharashtra for his contributions to the development of the farm sector. Rohit’s father, Rajendra, is also respected for work performed through the Baramati Krishi Vikas Pratishthan. Rohit, a highly educated man, is the CEO of Baramati Agro Ltd., a position he assumed at the young age of 21. Under his leadership, the company has made significant contributions to the agricultural sector, including distributing 170 water tankers daily to drought-affected areas in Maharashtra. He also served as the President of the Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA) from 2018 to 2019.


Sources say that fielding him from the Shirsufal-Gunwadi constituency in the Pune zilla parishad elections was a conscious decision on the part of the Pawar family and his entry into politics was a low-profile event. He was elected to the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly in 2019. As a young MLA he established the Karjat-Jamkhed Integrated Development Foundation (KJIDF) to tackle local development challenges and improve the quality of life for residents. Additionally, he founded the Srujan Foundation, which organizes various events and competitions to engage and empower the youth.


Since the rebellion within the party by his uncle Ajit Pawar, Rohit has become the shadow of his octogenarian grand uncle Sharad Pawar. He has been taking on Ajit Pawar along with CM Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena and even the BJP. He has even seen the flip side of such aggression, when he got a summon from the ED for some irregularities at Baramati Agro Ltd.


In recent years, Rohit Pawar has been involved in various campaigns and initiatives to promote development and empower the youth. His efforts have helped raise the profile of the Karjat-Jamkhed constituency on the socio-political map of Maharashtra. As he continues to grow in his political career, Rohit Pawar is considered a potential contender for leadership roles within the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).

Comments

bottom of page