Mahesh Mangaonkar is an Indian squash player from Helsinki, Finland. Apart from becoming the first Indian to win the IMET Open, he was also a part of the Indian men’s national squash team and won gold medals at the 2014 and 2023 Asian Games.
Wiki/Biography
Mahesh Mangaonkar was born on Wednesday, March 23, 1994 in Mumbai, Maharashtra (age 29; as of 2023). His zodiac sign is Aries. In September 2021, he studied for a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration at the Hämeenlinna University of Applied Sciences in southern Finland. In May 2023, he joined CalevaLAB as a thesis student.
appearance
Height (approximately): 5′10″
Weight (approximately): 75kg
Hair color: black
Eye color: black
family
Parents and siblings
Mahesh Mangaonkar’s father’s name is Dayanand and his mother’s name is Anjali.
Mahesh with his parents at their home in Borivli, Mumbai
wife and children
In February 2023, he married Maarit, a social worker from Finland.
Mahesh and Marit
Relationships/Affairs
Mahesh dated Maarit for six years before marrying her.
Profession
In 2009, he won the prestigious British Junior Open Squash Championship in the under-15 category. In January 2012, he joined the Professional Squash Association (PSA), the global governing body for men’s and women’s professional squash worldwide. At the age of 18, he made his debut on the PSA World Tour and achieved a major achievement by defeating his opponent Lukas Serme in the final and winning his first title at the Prague Open in the Czech Republic. In an interview after the two-hour game, he said:
It was extremely difficult and extremely long. I was completely dead. This was definitely a first game for me. “
In 2013, he competed in the PSA World Tour Challenger 5 event in Bratislava, Slovakia, where he defeated two-time champion Jan Kukar of the Czech Republic in the semifinals. He then became the first Indian to win the IMET Open, defeating defending champion Greg Loban of Scotland in a thrilling final. In an interview, talking about winning the competition, he said:
I was happy to win third, fourth took a break and fifth fought back. Squash is also a mental game and I gave it my all in the last game. “
Mahesh Mangaonkar at IMET Open
In 2014, he became a member of the Indian men’s national squash team; other members of the team include Saurav Ghosal, Kush Kumar and Harinder Pal Sandhu. At the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea, the team defeated the Malaysian team in the final and won the gold medal. In January 2015, his world ranking reached 44th, which was the highest ranking of his career. In 2016, he participated in the Sekisui Open, a Professional Squash Association event held in Klins, Switzerland, and defeated Spanish player Bernat Jaume in the final. In June 2019, he easily won the 76th National Senior Squash Championship in Pune, defeating Abhishek Pradhan 12-10, 11-7, 11-9.
Mahesh Mangaonkar and Joshua Chinappa after winning national titles in their respective categories
In 2022, after living in Finland for more than 3 years, he was allowed to participate in the Finnish National Championships and became the Finnish national champion. At the 2022 PSA World Tour, he produced one of the best performances of his career in his first event and entered the top 16 of the Platinum event.
Mahesh Mangaonkar to compete in PSA World Tour 2022
In 2023, he is a member of the Indian men’s national squash team; Saurav Ghosal, Harinder Pal Sandhu and Abhay Singh are the other members of the team. In the 2022 Asian Games finals in Hangzhou, China, the team defeated Pakistan and won the gold medal.
19th Asian Games gold medalists Saurav Ghosal, Abhay Singh, Mahesh Mangaonkar and Harinder Pal Sandhu (left to right)
In an interview, he talked about his victory at the 2022 Asian Games and said:
I was very upset losing to Nasir Iqbal. This is really nerve-wracking. Winning the gold medal is a proud moment for me, the team and Indian Squash. We had a tough draw in the pool stage but made it work. Unfortunately, we lost to Pakistan in the group stage, which motivated us to do well in the final. It was good revenge and revenge for us.Special thanks to Saurav [Ghosal] Be a great leader. He has been an inspiration to young people including myself. “
Awards
- In February 2019, Mahesh Mangaonkar was awarded the prestigious Shiv Chhatrapati Award by the Maharashtra government for his outstanding performance in sports ).
Facts/Trivia
- In September 2020, he joined Crossfit Finland as a level 1 coach.
- In June 2022, he joined the Finnish Squash Association as a part-time coach of the men’s national team.
- He is a professional sparring partner and is associated with many national federations in Europe.
- He played for 8 different clubs in the Dutch League, English League, Czech League, Swedish League, Finnish League, Italian League, German League and French League.
- His squash coach, Sebastian Weenik, is a Dutch national coach, and his strength and conditioning coach, Pierre Macon, is a CrossFit regional athlete from France.
Mahesh Mangaonkar trains in Helsinki
- He is the sports director of the Norwegian Squash Club in Oslo, Norway.
- According to him, his mother has always been his biggest supporter. In an interview, he said of his mother:
Life is hard and sometimes I want to give up when things don’t go my way. Every time my mother is there to remind me of my worth as a human being. My mother encouraged me to keep reaching for things that are out of reach and to never settle for less than I deserve. “
- According to him, his favorite foods are his mother’s shrimp curry and grilled chicken.
- He moved to Europe when he was 19 and has lived there ever since.
- Mahesh Mangaonkar’s dream is to compete in the Olympics and win a medal. In October 2023, the International Olympic Committee officially recommended that squash be included in the 2028 Olympic Games. When talking about his dream in an interview, he said:
I still have a few more years before I get the call to retire. Since squash will be included in the 2028 Olympics, I do want to try for an Olympic medal. Of course I want to play in another Asian Games. I want to push myself and stay healthy until the Los Angeles Olympics to fulfill my dream of competing in the Olympics and winning a medal. I’ll be 34 by then, so hopefully everything goes well. “
- In February 2020, he underwent surgery to treat a knee injury caused by overuse and overtraining. The injury was caused in 2018, but the pain significantly worsened after the 2019 championship game in New York.
- He mainly uses Prince Sports rackets.
- According to him, the most dangerous thing he has ever done was climbing the 6150m peak in Leh.
Mahesh Mangaonkar in Leh
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education