A failed hero: What went wrong with Santhi

LOSING LIFE'S BATTLE: Santhi is admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of the Government Hospital in Thanjavur after an alleged suicide bid.

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Keywords: Athletics, Suicide Attempt

Chennai: A silver medal at the Asian Games in Doha last year and then stripped of it following a gender controversy. And now an alleged suicide attempt.

Wind in her face, leaping forward across victory lines. That's how Santhi Soundarajan, a promising athlete from Pudukottai district of Tamil Nadu battled for glory for long.

But now, this 26-year-old seems to be losing life's battle itself. Santhi is admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of the Government Hospital in Thanjavur after an alleged suicide bid.

Santhi had made headlines after winning medals at the South Asian Games in Colombo. But it was failing the gender test at the 2006 Doha Asian Games that made her the talk of the town.

Though she denied the charge, the stain remained. Neighbours believe family feud over money could also be a reason behind the step. After all, the gift of over Rs 10 lakh that Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi made her last year was big money for this small town girl.

Neighbours say Shanthi was a quiet girl who didn't have any friends. She kept to herself and didn't venture out much. Her sudden rise to fame and the equally sudden humiliation that followed might have played on her mind. Especially since questions of gender are ridiculed in conservative towns like her native Pudukottai.

Shanthi had dropped out from her BSc Computer Science course. She was unemployed and not looking for a job either. Now to add to her troubles, she'll have to face the legal consequences of her suicide bid as well.