Gulmarg (J&K), February 23 – The three athletes, Sahil Thakur, Syed Zain, and Faizan Ahmad Lone, share a single mentor and a single dream. What unites them is not geography.
On a ridge above Gulmarg, where the snow gleams with the promise of ambition, these three young Indian alpine skiers are carving more than just lines into the ice. They are carving a future.
The towering slopes of Manali and the powder fields of Kashmir could not be more distinct, but a shared belief was nurtured under the watchful eye of Mohammad Arif Khan, the trailblazer who became the first Indian to represent the country twice at the Winter Olympics.
Under Khan's guidance, the trio recently trained in the Sudtirol region of Italy, absorbing the technical rigor and competitive mindset that define Europe's alpine elite.
For 19-year-old Sahil Thakur, skiing is an inheritance and instinct. Raised in Manali in a family where snow is both a playground and a profession, his father Devi Chand and brothers Rajneesh and Rahul, all skiers, Sahil speaks of Italy with reverence.
"When I returned, I could feel the difference," says Sahil. "The coaching, the attention to technique, it changes how you see the mountain."
A national gold and silver medallist and a competitor at the 2024 Winter Youth Olympic Games in Gangwon, South Korea, Sahil now sets his sights on a singular horizon: the 2030 Winter Olympics in the French Alps. His ambition is not tentative; it is inevitable.
If Sahil's journey was written in his bloodline, Syed Zain's was carved from aspiration. Raised in Humhama, on the outskirts of Srinagar, Zain, 16, grew up far from the European epicentres of Alpine skiing. Yet his rise has been emphatic, two gold medals in Slalom and Giant Slalom at the inaugural Khelo India Winter Games (KIWG) in 2020, followed by two silver medals at the Junior Nationals in 2022.
"Skiing is a European sport," Zain said. "But Olympians like Arif Khan showed us it can belong to India too."
His foundation was laid at the Indian Institute of Skiing and Mountaineering (IISM) in Gulmarg, refined by Khan's mentorship, and strengthened alongside 35 to 40 Indian athletes during the Italy training programme.
Zain also credits six-time Olympian Shiva Keshavan, whose legacy continues to anchor India's winter sports ecosystem.
Faizan Ahmad Lone's story is one of perseverance sharpened by opportunity.
A five-time national gold medallist and four-time Khelo India champion, the 19-year-old Faizan's ascent has been powered not only by talent but by crucial support.
"Skiing is expensive," he says. "Arif didn't just coach me, he helped me secure sponsorship. That allowed me to compete internationally."
Faizan has since represented India at the 2025 Winter Asian Games in Harbin, China, and competed in FIS races across Dubai and Kazakhstan - each race another step in India's slow but steady climb toward alpine relevance.
Yet beyond medals, training camps, and Olympic dreams, there is a quieter symbol of their shared journey.
Each of their helmets bears the signature of Federica Brignone, the Italian Olympic champion and one of Alpine skiing’s modern greats. It is ink on plastic, but it carries the weight of possibility.
"Her signature reminds us why we do this," they say. "It keeps us focused. It keeps us dreaming."
On Gulmarg's slopes, where cold air sharpens resolve, and every descent demands courage, Sahil, Zain, and Faizan are no longer just athletes in training. They are standard-bearers of a nation still learning to believe in winter. And somewhere between gravity and glory, they are finding their way down the mountain and toward history.
