PREPARING FOR LAUNCH

After some extended downtime, India’s Olympic prospects are looking forward to a bit of competitive action ahead of the Tokyo Games

- NEERU BHATIA

I really miss playing tournaments,” said badminton star P.V. Sindhu, when asked what she misses the most from the pre-Covid days. Her last event was the All England Open in March 2020. “But with tournaments starting from January, I am really looking forward to performing well at the Thailand Open,” she said.

The world champion is working with sports scientist Rebecca Randell of the Gatorade Sports Science Institute and training with Badminton England’s Toby Penty and Rajiv Ouseph at the National Badminton Centre in Milton Keynes, England.

All Olympics-bound Indian athletes like Sindhu are itching to compete, having resumed their training in June. The break may have come as a welcome one for some initially, but the long period of inaction that followed had its own challenges.

Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, India’s brightest hope for an Olympic medal in athletics, had an injury-plagued 2019 and an equally forgettable 2020, which saw him competing in only one event. “It has been a long time since I competed,” said Chopra, who is training at the national camp in Bhubaneshwar.

For a young Sindhu or Chopra, time is on their side. But the clock has never ticked so loudly for seniors like P.R. Sreejesh, former captain of the Indian hockey team. “As a goalkeeper, it is good that I got more time to prepare,” said the 32-year-old. “But at the same time, I need to be playing at the highest level to remain at my best.”

With teams undergoing training camps since June-July, coaches have had to prepare plans for different scenarios—be it for pre-Olympic competitions or for going to the Olympics without any international competitions.

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