Beijing Olympics 2008

I knew I had a chance: Sushil Kumar

Inspite of being away from the limelight and the pressure of expectations, Beijing Olympics bronze medal winning wrestler Sushil Kumar says that he always knew he had a shot at glory, even though not many people paid attention.

“Probably you may say that there was no expectation from the people back home and the media too. But me and my coach (Satpal) always knew I had a fair chance of winning a medal and I’m happy I could achieve that,” a beaming Sushil said.

“While it is good not to have that burden of expectation on your shoulder, I think we can give even more provided we get better facilities. I want to dedicate this medal to my coach Satpal,” said Sushil who is the currently ranked number seven in the world.

“It was not easy out there. I had to compete in four bouts today, which did make me weary towards the end. I had not played against Doug Schwab (USA) and Albert Batyrov (Belarus) earlier. So they were unknown rivals for me. But once I got past them and had Leonid Spiridinov (Kazakhstan) against me, I sensed my chance. I said to myself ‘I cannot let it go after coming so close to a medal’. And if I was tired, so was he,” said Sushil.

“I thought I’ll do whatever it takes and the end result is the medal is mine. It’s an unforgettable moment in my life and it seems I’m living in a dream,” said the grappler.

Tags: beijing olympics 2008, bronze medal, India, Sushil Kumar, Wrestling