Protistha Samanta put up a commendable effort at the ongoing 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, where she finished seventh in the women’s vault final of artistic gymnastics on Monday.
The 22-year-old from West Bengal recorded an average score of 12.883 after scoring 12.700 on her first vault and 12.666 on her second.
The result left Protistha’s father, Suman Samanta, wondering what might have been had the gymnast not suffered a serious knee injury last year.
Protistha, who comes from Baksara in Howrah, tore the anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee and underwent eight months of rehabilitation before returning to competition. At Scotstoun Stadium, she gave her everything despite competing with a heavily strapped right knee.
“She regrets that she could not win a medal. Had her right leg been completely fine, things might have been different,” Suman said in an exclusive chat with The Telegraph Online.
“She suffered the ACL injury last year and had to undergo rehabilitation for eight months. She returned and continued competing, but recovering from an injury like that is not easy.”
A journey that began at three
Protistha began gymnastics when she was three and competed at the national level by the age of eight.
“She started gymnastics when she was three and won her first national title at eight. This was her second Commonwealth Games,” Suman said.
The accuracy of this being Protistha’s second Commonwealth Games appearance should be verified against the official records.
Mother left home to support her training
Suman credited Protistha’s mother, Suvra Samanta, with laying the foundation for her career.
“Her mother first took her to a gymnastics centre when she was three. From that day, she remained closely involved with Protistha’s training,” he said.
Suvra later left the family home in Howrah and stayed with Protistha in Tripura so that her daughter could continue training and represent the state.
Protistha Samanta with her parents. (Special Arrangement)
“Her mother left home and stayed with her in Tripura so that she could train properly. Bishweshwar Nandi wanted her to compete for Tripura, and her mother went there with her. Our family has made many sacrifices for her career,” Suman said.
“We are not from a sporting family, and we are not wealthy. Protistha had to struggle a lot to reach this level.”
Nandi’s advice before the final
Dronacharya Award-winning coach Bishweshwar Nandi trained Protistha for five years between 2019 and 2024.
“I trained her for five years, from 2019 to 2024,” Nandi told The Telegraph Online.
“She called me yesterday. I gave her my best wishes and told her to focus on the landing. I asked her to be careful about taking a step after landing because a fixed landing could increase her score.”
Sadly, her average score in Glasgow, which initially landed at her fourth, was not enough as she dropped to seventh by the end of the final. Canada’s Fontaine won gold with a score of 14.000.