India’s gymnast Dipa Karmakar’s pathbreaking performance in the Rio Olympics was praised by many, including former Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, who was picked to present her, along with PV Sindhu and Sakshi Malik, a BMW car in September.

However, owing to maintenance issues, Dipa has decided to return her gift to the original owner V Chamundeswaranath, president of the Hyderabad Badminton Association.

The prime reason behind it seems to be the difficulty Dipa and her family is having maintaining such a posh car in a city like Agartala, where the roads are narrow and not well-maintained. Moreover, since Dipa’s next assignment, the Challengers’ Cup in Germany is a month away; Dipa has been advised not to bear the maintenance cost and rather devote her time towards practicing.

“It wasn’t Dipa’s decision. Rather it was a collective decision taken by her family and me,” Bisheswar Nandi said. Bisheswar Nandi is coach of Dipa Karmakar.

Nandi furthermore added that they have spoken to the Hyderabad Badminton Association about their concerns and that the body has accepted their request. “We have spoken to the concerned authority and gladly, they have no problems with it. It was also suggested to them that if possible, they transfer the amount equivalent to the value of the car to Dipa’s bank account. And if not, we will be happy with whatever amount they decide,” he said.

About Dipa Karmakar

Dipa Karmakar (born 9 August 1993) is an artistic gymnast who represented India at the 2016 Summer Olympics. She is the first Indian female gymnast ever to compete in the Rio Olympics 2016, and the first Indian gymnast to do so in 52 years. She attained 4th position in Women’s Vault Gymnastics event of Rio Olympics 2016 with an overall score of 15.066.

She first gained attention when she won a bronze medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, becoming the first Indian female gymnast to do so in the history of the Games. She is being supported by the GoSports Foundation under the Rahul Dravid Athlete Mentorship Programme.

Karmakar is one of only five women who have successfully landed the Produnova, the most difficult vault currently performed in women’s gymnastics. She also won a bronze medal at the Asian Gymnastics Championships and finished fifth at the 2015 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, both firsts for her country.

For her wonderful performance in Rio Olympics 2016, the government of India conferred upon her the khel ratna award in August 2016