There is a dialogue from the popular Kannada film ‘KGF: Chapter 2’ that Lokesh Sathyanathan remembers well. This is the moment when the main character, in essence, says to his mother, “This is what you dreamed of. That’s what I’m going to conquer.”“I always relate to this scene,” Lokesh told Timesofindia.com from Texas. That one word he wanted to hear from her – it makes me laugh when I think about it.”On a grueling NCAA night in Fayetteville, Arkansas, Lokesh Satyanathan jumped 8.21m. The jump bettered his indoor national record of 8.01m and, more importantly, he became only the fourth Indian ever to win the NCAA Division I title. Also, the distance pushed him to third place on the all-time Indian long jump list behind established names Jason Aldrin. Murali Srishankar. However, behind this victory were years of hurt, loss, and faith built by the words of her mother and the strength of her father.
Road to Fayetteville
Lokesh, a health science undergraduate at Tarleton State University, moved to the USA in 2022 in pursuit of a dream that had already overcome roadblocks.Before the flights to America and the college tracks, there was a serious accident in Bengaluru in which he suffered severe facial injuries. Then came the freak injury at a gym in Louisville: A teammate dropped a weight on his left leg, breaking the big toe on his takeoff foot. He had to undergo two surgeries, for the second one he had to go back to India.
“It wasn’t a good year in Louisville,” Lokesh recalls. “Due to this unfortunate incident, I had to undergo two surgeries. That’s when Reliance Foundation stepped in, helped me with rehabilitation and my return to America.”When he returned, he transferred to Tarleton State University to train under Bobby Carter, the head coach who specializes in jumps. “He is the most humble and kindest person I have ever met,” says Lokesh. “He genuinely cares. I think he’s one of my closest friends.”Carter’s coaching, the high-performance environment supported by Reliance, and the steadfast belief of his family brought the next chapter of his journey together.
The promise he makes to his mother.
But, even before the surgeries and setbacks, there was a deep scar. His mother’s passing left him not only without parents, but also without the anchor he had always talked about dreaming about. “I always told my mom, once I get here, I’ll take you there,” he says. “I’ll show you life, American life, everything. I’ll take you.”When he jumped 8.21 meters in Fayetteville, Lokesh looked up. “I knew her tears would be filled with joy,” he says. “I was looking up at the sky, but it wasn’t just the sky. It was thanking God and my mom. I knew they were in the same place, guiding me.”Lokesh remembers his mother’s last words as a solemn expectation. “He never asked me for anything big,” says Lokesh. “She just wanted me to be great there. When I remember her face, her smile, and the last thing she said, it just makes me feel, ‘Let’s go.’ If that’s what my mom wanted, and that’s what my dad wanted, then that’s what I’m going for.”But for Lokesh, as much as grief is part of his story, he has turned it into a yardstick by which he measures his discipline.
Support of his father
Lokesh’s father once wanted to be a footballer, but he had no support, no structure, no system. He later became a taxi driver for 10-15 years, driving late into the night, coming home, and then taking his son to training the next morning.Even now, at the age of 51, he plays regular 90-minute matches. Physical damage that would break most men is, for him, normal. “This man had nothing,” Lokesh says in awe. “He didn’t get what he wanted. But the love and passion he has for the game, he still goes out there and plays.”Six months before the NCAA title, his father lost his mother Pranjeevathi. Weeks later, he was still telling Lokesh, “Don’t worry about a thing. I’m here. Just have faith and keep going.”“It sounds simple,” says Lokesh. “But when you’ve lost your wife, and then your mother, and you’re still telling your son to keep going, it’s not easy. It is a power. If he can do that, I have no excuse.”
Mind games after loss and injury
Lokesh too has to fight his own battle. “I have mental health issues, anxiety,” he candidly admits. “After the accident in Bangalore, after the surgeries, I wondered if I was still good enough to be on the NCAA circuit.”At this stage, her mother’s words came as a constant reminder. “It always made me dream big,” he says. “Even when I was down, she’d say, ‘You’ve got talent. You just have to believe.”This belief, once internalized, became his own. He now works regularly with a sports psychologist in the US, treating his mental condition as seriously as his physical training. “We players are 100 per cent physically ready,” he says. “But the results come from the mental game. That’s what I’m improving on.”He compares his path. Neeraj Chopra. “Nobody gets to that level without a struggle,” he says. “It’s normal. It depends on how you carry yourself through these stages.”
Discipline after celebration
On paper, Lokesh’s jump of 8.21 meters is a record. In the Indian context, it was a statement; The night he won, he didn’t extend the celebration. “The next day, I woke up, and it was like, OK, I’ve done it,” says Lokesh when asked about the feeling after the win. “I know I won the title. But now it’s next. The next day, I started my training and flushed and everything. The feeling was great. It was amazing. I was thankful and grateful to Allah. But I never let that stop the process.As for her father, watching from India at 5.30am, his eyes filled with tears. “He gave me a flying kiss,” says Lokesh. “My aunt was crying in the background. I didn’t stop them. I knew they were tears of joy.”When asked what jumping means to him beyond the sport, he was straightforward. “Jumping was my calling. I was born Lokesh Satyanathan. Today I am known as Lokesh Satyanathan, an international long jumper. That is my aim. I am working for God’s cause and His will.”There is no beat in the way he says it. This is a man who has learned through loss and injury. On the scoreboard, it may read 8.21m, but for Lokesh Satyanathan, it reads something else: “This is what my mother wanted.”
