Mansi Vakharia, one of Gujarat's brightest women’s soccer player, died last week as she was suffering from GBS virus which causes a rapid onset of muscle weakness. The 18-year-old college student went into a coma a week ago and could not recover from the condition. On Sunday her blood pressure dipped drastically. Mansi, who represented the state in all the categories was the cynosure of all eyes on the football field with her coaches praising her because of her steely resolve on the field. Kuldeep Gadhvi, the sports director and the soccer coach of JG International where she studied in class XI and XII, said that Mansi was way ahead of most of the players of her age. “She was regular in the state squad across all the categories and led Gujarat during the national championships”. A rare combination of academics and sports, Mansi was exceptionally talented in every sense.
“I knew Mansi when she was studying in class VII. She was a truly high-spirited sports personality who knew how to utilise her time. She was exceptionally good in her studies as well and had secured very high marks throughout her career. Such was her dedication and passion towards her studies and soccer that she had not watched television for the last four years. She could also play the keyboard fluently,” Gadhvi added. “Representing Gujarat in national soccer is a big thing for any sportstperson and thus Mansi’s demise is a very big loss,’’ said Amit Tomar, the vice-president of the Ahmedabad District Football Association.
