New Delhi: Athletics Federation of India (AFI) chief Adille Sumariwalla on Wednesday opined Neeraj Chopra’s historic Tokyo Olympics gold helped the country’s track and field athletes overcome a ‘huge mental block’.
The 23-year-old Neeraj created history at the Japanese capital two weeks back when he threw 87.58m to clinch the javelin gold becoming the first Indian track and field athlete to win gold at the Olympics.
Neeraj also became the second Indian to win an individual Olympic gold after Abhinav Bindra in 2008. The 2016 U-20 World Champion, who rose to No.2 globally after his gold medal exploits, demonstrated that nothing is impossible and India’s potential to produce many more champions in the future.
World Athletics chief @sebcoe to young #TeamIndia Champions- I love watching you guys, this is your chance,what you did is fantastic, Congratulations!
🤗This is why you are everyone's favourite legend, a true champion, a great leader of #Athletics Sebastian Coe. Thank you chief! pic.twitter.com/XZZF1mbrOW
— Athletics Federation of India (@afiindia) August 19, 2021
“Just a day before, the Indian mixed 4x400m relay team won bronze in the U-20 World Championships in Nairobi on Wednesday,” Sumariwala said during a virtual media interaction.
“The federation is there to guide the athletes and show them the way forward. Neeraj’s gold has shown a way that it is possible. He has removed the mental block and I assure you that there are many more things to happen.”
“Neeraj showed the way, Hima (Das) showed the way and it is proof that we are emerging into a new India,” he added. The Indian quartet of Bharat, Priya, Summy, and Kapil finished third in Nairobi clocking 3:20.60s, earning the country’s only fifth medal in the championships’ history.
Nigeria and Poland won gold and silver medals with 3:19.70s and 3:19.80s respectively. India had qualified for the final as the second-best team overall in a record time of 3:23.36s in the heats.
It's 🥉 for 🇮🇳!
India's 4x400m Mixed Relay Team wins a bronze medal at #WorldAthleticsU20 in Nairobi
They bettered their heats time to 3:20.60 in the final
Many congratulations!#Athletics #IndianSports pic.twitter.com/t5O7JgNSD8
— SAIMedia (@Media_SAI) August 18, 2021
The bronze medal, according to Sumariwalla, demonstrated India’s athletic bench strength. “Getting an Olympic medal is ultimate but it is not a flash in the pan. This medal at the world junior championships shows the depth and this is why this medal is so important,” he said.
“As far as I am concerned the best will run, junior or senior doesn’t matter, bench strength is important. The federation is there to create enough bench strength, where we can change runners, substitute runners when needed.”
The AFI president also predicted there is many more in the pipeline. “It’s a momentous occasion for us. This goes to show the depth of our junior programme. It’s just a matter of time that we start getting more medals from athletics at the world level,” Sumariwalla said.
“I think it’s a great vision but it’s a long-term plan. We can’t achieve success overnight.”
