Varied emotions of Indian athletes as Olympic success sinks in
NEW DELHI: Gagan Narang's nightmare is over, Yogeshwar Dutt too doesn't need to live with the feeling of being an Olympic failure, while for Saina Nehwal the ghosts of Beijing have finally been exorcised. For these Indian athletes -- along with three others -- have finally achieved their dream of finishing on the podium at the world's biggest sporting event after years of struggle. Returning after winning a bronze medal at the London Olympics after two failed attempts at Athens and Beijing, Yogeshwar can't thank God enough for rewarding his hard work. "There was pressure on me because this was my third Olympics and I am more grateful to God that he finally blessed me with a medal at London," he said during a felicitation program organised by electronics major Samsung. The silver medallists were awarded Rs 15 lakh and bronze winners got 10 lakh each. Such was his zeal to win an Olympic medal that Yogeshwar fought like a gladiator, fighting five bouts one after the other, that left him with a badly swollen eye. "It doesn't matter if I hurt my eyes or legs or any other part of my body. These will heal but I would not have been able to live with this feeling that I could not win a Olympic medal in my life," said the 29-year-old wrestler, who outwitted North Korea's Jong Myong Ri to win the bronze in 60kg freestyle.
"Now I want to change the colour of the medal in the next Olympics in Rio," he added.
For rifle shooter Narang, it was a nightmare to live with the feeling that he could not win an Olympic medal, despite winning enough in other international competitions. "It was a nightmare and a challenging situation, every time someone would ask me about not winning an Olympic medal, there was pressure. But I am glad I could achieve what I wanted," said the 29-year-old, who clinched the bronze medal in the men's 10 m air rifle event. "In sports after the physical barrier, it is about mental challenges. It is about not giving up and I am glad that I could hang in there and deliver.