Cayman gymnast Karthik Adapa is preparing to take to the floor, rings and bars, when he flips into action at the Senior Pan American Championship on Wednesday, 22 May.
Adapa will compete against top international gymnasts in Santa Marta, Colombia – something he did not expect to happen.
Adapa told the Compass that the PanAm event will be his first in months after numerous challenges nearly forced him to step away from the sport permanently.
“Originally, I was unsure if it was a good idea for me to compete as the boy’s programme had just shut down in Cayman and I had been out of training for about a month,” Adapa said, noting that he was considering retiring until his long-time coach – Sorin Rad – gave him a training opportunity in Orlando, Florida.
“He offered to train me as well as house me in his home,” Adapa said.
And for the past month, the Caymanian Commonwealth Ganes representative and last year’s Inter-Island Games silver medallist has been training alongside Rad, trying to get back into shape for the Pan-American event.
“I couldn’t thank him enough for allowing me to keep training and represent Cayman again,” Adapa said.
While Adapa credits coach Rad for his comeback, he understands that without his commitment and discipline he would not have the chance to represent his home.
“For my competition on Wednesday, I feel really confident despite the circumstances leading up… I made the most of what I had.”
With fewer than 48 hours to go before he competes, Adapa said all of his fine-tuning has been “effortless” and he’s looking forward to the task at hand.
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