Among several athletes, Commonwealth Games 2022 was way to return to the medal contention for some like Amit Panghal and Vinesh Phogat after the disappointment of the Tokyo Olympics last year. For Phogat especially, as the star wrestler was one of the top medal contenders but faced a heartbreaking early exit from the competition after loss in the quarter-finals.
However, it was a return nothing short of sensational for the 27-year-old wrestler, who was on the mat again in search of a podium finish and she looked like she meant business. With just four wrestlers in her category of 53kg, Phogat proved to be just too good for all three of her opponents as she won all three bouts in Nordic rounds to win the gold with 13 classification points.
As the Indian contingent met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his residence, Phogat on the sidelines told the news agency PTI that she had almost quit wrestling after the disappointment of Olympics. She also praised PM Modi for providing the required motivation to do it all over again.
“Definitely, you can say that (Vinesh 2.0 reloaded). I have managed to cross a big mental barrier. I almost gave up wrestling because in two Olympics I couldn’t win a medal. Olympics is the biggest stage for an athlete. But my family always backed me, they always trust in my abilities.
“When I was low, I met Modi ji (Narendra Modi) and he gave me motivation. He said ‘we trust you and you can do it’. That reignited the spark in me, she added.
Phogat also commended the support from her family, friends and fans saying that she has got everyone behind her while saying that the backing after loss really matters and that got her going.
Since childhood I like sports. I always play from my heart, I don’t have any pressure from anyone… I feel happy when I win. I always have the passion to win. My family is always supportive of what I am doing.
“After you win everybody is behind you, but when you get the support after losing it matters a lot, and I have got that from my family, fans and well-wishers after Tokyo,” she further said.
Phogat said that the loss at Tokyo still hurts but she wanted to make sure, she comes storming back and with the hard work she put in the last year, she didn’t want to disappoint herself this time around.
“The most important thing for an athlete is to replicate the thing in the mat which you did in training. I couldn’t do that in Tokyo and I am still very sad about it.
“But the hard work I have put in the last one year, the way I have managed myself, I wanted to prove myself… The support which I got from all quarters was also at the back of the mind, I can’t disappoint myself,” Phogat added
