Meet Telangana cyclist Maxwell Travor who trains children to realize Olympic dream

Maxwell Travor, an ace Indian cyclist, eagerly waits for the day an Indian wins the Olympic medal in cycling.

"You see, I've won multiple medals and broken my own record three times, but I missed the Olympic record by 0.04 seconds," Trevor tells NewsMeter.

He now leads the Dr. Maxwell Trevor Cycling Welfare Association (MTCWA), which identifies and teaches children to compete in cycling.

According to Maxwell, the country is "overflowing" with potential that needs to be "tapped" at the proper time.

"Using the TIP (Talent Identification Program) and MTCSP (Maxwell Trevor Cycling Scholarship Program) we engage needy cyclists from all around Telangana and throughout the country who are fit but cannot afford to pursue competitive cycling in our country," he says.

Maxwell has been training children for many years. All training at the MTCWA is provided at no cost.

"I come from a middle-class household, so I understand the anguish. When I failed to break my Olympic record, I blamed it on a lack of advice to pursue this sport at such a young age. "I don't want any young brilliant youngster to feel that way, which is why I started this programme," Maxwell explained.

Over 35-40 children can be seen practicing and riding at Osmania University's Cycling Velodrome every day. In addition to children from Hyderabad and Telangana, the MTCWA trains children from Orissa, Arunachal Pradesh, and other states.

"At this stage, we don't have the means to instruct the youngsters as they get older. As a result, I consider MTCWA as a feeding unit for the Khelo India project," he explained.

The Khelo India project organizes national-level multidisciplinary Grassroot games every year. The champions of these games are given scholarships to pursue their sport further.

This year, almost 1200 youngsters participated in the TIP, of whom 40 were chosen.

MTCWA gets a lot of support from several people including the children's parents. "Sports come with a good diet and discipline. That's what we teach here. And we have received an overwhelming response from parents regarding how well-behaved their children turn out after they train with us. This prompts many of them to get involved with training by supporting us in terms of equipment and funds," Maxwell said.