Sixteen-year-old Jarma Malla of Kalikot who began playing volleyball with a sock stuffed with grass is now a member of Nepal’s national volleyball team.
Malla was a seventh grader at Kalika Secondary School when she led her team to victory in the district-level President’s Cup. The following year, she was selected for the mid-western regional team and last year she made it as a national player.
“Now that the SLC exams have ended, I can fully concentrate on the game,” says Malla, who had to juggle schoolwork and volleyball for the past four years.
Malla is proud of having led her regional team to several victories. Her team won the regional championship in Nepalganj and came in second at a national competition held in Kathmandu.
“I don’t know when I got addicted to the game but now I want to make a career of it,” says Malla who has participated in four regional-level and two national-level competitions.
Although she is happy to be representing the nation, Malla feels that the National Sports Council is not doing enough to promote players from rural areas. “They only come looking for players right before the competitions. We are then made to compete with the police and army teams without proper training,” says Malla.
“Even when we have the confidence to do something, we cannot perform well due to lack of opportunities and regular trainings,” she adds.
She has won the best player award in four regional competitions and plans to move to Kathmandu for to play more volleyball.