India, June 21 -- When Ghaziabad-based Akash Sharma wore the India blazer after winning gold in the Men's Senior (18-28) Supine Individual category at the first World Yogasana Championship in Ahmedabad earlier this month, he lived a moment he had carried in his heart for years. "There is this one scene in Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (2013) where Milkha Singh (played by Farhan Akhtar) stands in front of a mirror admiring himself in the India blazer. Ever since I watched that scene, I wanted to experience that feeling at least once," he recalls, adding, "When I received my India blazer, I first lit an incense stick and offered a prayer. Then I stood in front of the mirror wearing it. It was surreal!" Sharma's journey was far from easy. As a child, he says, he, his mother and younger brother Gopal would set up stalls at melas to earn extra money. He first wanted to become a wrestler, but an injury ended that dream. "I still wanted to compete and test myself. That's when my brother and I started learning yoga," he adds. Two months before the championship, Gopal passed away. "I was shattered. I had no intention of competing. My mother told me, 'You have to go. This is what your brother would have wanted," he shares. In Ahmedabad, Sharma turned to meditation to regain focus: "Before I knew it, I had a gold medal around my neck. That medal is for Gopal." For him, competitive yoga is as intense as any sport: "In yoga, you compete with yourself. The real challenge is mastering your mind."...