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Image Source: IANS
Odisha Teenager Anjali Munda Turns Chance Selection Into Historic Gold At KITG 2026
Khelo India Tribal Games: In 2022, during a regular class, when a sports teacher asked students to select different sports, 11-year-old Anjali Munda quietly raised her hand and chose swimming, the only sport she knew.
Anjali comes from Gahiragadiya village in Odisha’s Jajpur district, about 100 kilometres from Bhubaneswar. She knew swimming as a fun activity that involved splashing water, but she never received any formal training.
Anjali, the youngest of four siblings whose father is a van driver at a local factory, moved to the Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS) at age 10. There, tribal students from across the state receive free education and boarding. She was initially inspired by her elder sister, an archer.
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