Seema Punia Antil Ends Gold Medal Drought At Asian Games

Strength of A Woman: Seema Punia Antil Ends Gold Medal Drought At Asian Games

Seema Punia Antil, India's star discus player made another winning throw to grab the gold medal for India ending the drought in the track and field events for the nation. She won an impressive victory on the third day of the competition, fending off the challenge from 2 Chinese athletes. The women's discus throw event was a cinch for Seema at the Asian Games in Incheon.

The Indian strong-woman achieved her impressive victory with a best throw of 61.03 m in the final. Team made Krishna Poonia managed a fourth place as well. 31 year old Seema had not participated in the previous 2 Asian Games and she came to Incheon to win her first gold medal in 3 years at this event. Her hard work and efforts paid off and she scored a massive victory with this throw, reminiscent of her past triumph at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games where she won a medal. There, she won a silver but this time it was a gold medal for Seema.

She took the lead with her first throw for 55.76, and finally made it with the best effort of 61.03 m on her fourth try, leaving her Chinese competitors far behind. China's discus thrower, Lu Xiaoxin could only manage a silver with the 59.35 m throw while her compatriot Tan Jian landed a bronze medal with an effort of 59.03m.

Seema shared her joy during the medal ceremony even as she shared with the reporters about how she had been training over the last three years. Seema was quoted by the media as saying “I am very happy to get the gold which I expected to win today. I have trained for this gold over the last three years.” She also spoke of how she had been waiting for this golden chance for 3 years now, saying “I have waited for this after missing the last two Asian Games.”

She also spoke of how she usually does not perform well in the first throw, but this time she followed her coach's instructions to hurl the disc beyond the 55m mark in her first try itself. Seema spoke of how her silver medal at the Glasgow CWG “motivated me to go for the gold here.”

Asked whether the extremely damp weather conditions affected the athletes, she said she wished she had “brought two extra pairs of shoes.” Apart from the weather and the competitors, Indian athletes have to battle a lot of adversity to reach the top of their game.

Cricket has become a passion for India but many homegrown sports such as Kabbadi are also gaining relevance and prominence in recent times. It is ultimately this aspect which is making sports a rich and evolving field in India. New energy and dynamism comes into any sport with the success of its players. Consider tennis where stalwarts such as Vijay Amritraj, Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes led the game to its triumphant success, one hopes Seema paves the way for new growth without boundaries for Indian discus throwers.