Double bonanza for Dutee Chand

The star sprinter says Hyderabad is always close to her heart as the city resurrected her career.

Hyderabad: It is a double bonanza for Indian star sprinter Dutee Chand as she is set to run in her second Olympics even as the Odisha Government recommended her name for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award.

“It feels so nice to hear that the Odisha Government announced my name for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award. Now with decks more or less cleared, I will be running in Tokyo Olympics also,” said Dutee.

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The 25-year-old sprinter will now participate in Tokyo Olympics in both 100m and 200m events by the virtue of the World Rankings quota as the qualification cut-off period ended on June 27.

Dutee’s ranking improved to 44 in the 100 metres while she is ranked 51st in 200m. Twenty-two spots were available in 100 metres and 15 spots in 200 metres. The World Athletics body will officially announce the list for the Tokyo Olympics on Thursday.

“I was nervous but was sure I could get through the rankings quota. I thought I was bit unfortunate when I missed the qualification mark by .2 seconds in the Indian Grand Prix IV with a 11.17 sprint in the 100 whereas the qualification timing was 11.15 seconds. These runs did help me in improving my ranking in 100m,” said Dutee from Bhubaneshwar.

Dutee stated that the city of Hyderabad will always be close to her heart. “The city gave me rebirth in my career. I can never forget the help of my coach Ramesh and (Pullela) Gopichand. They were kind enough to resurrect my career as I could stay in the Gopichand Academy and train with Ramesh sir at the Gachibowli Stadium. It is like my second home. Ramesh sir has been like a father figure to me,” she said.

Dutee, who has shifted to Bhubaneshwar now, said she is a confident athlete. “In 2016 Olympics, I ran against all odds as I came out of the hyperandrogenism controversy. I was not in a proper mental shape. But in this Olympics, I’m a matured and confident athlete.”

Meanwhile, an elated coach Nagapuri Ramesh hailed Dutee’s achievement. “She is a born fighter. She ran a good race in the Indian Grand Prix event but was unlucky not to qualify directly. Nevertheless this is a lovely opportunity. She needs to rest her body as she pushed in the two meets and she has a few niggles now,” he said.

Ramesh said by running at Gachibowli stadium, Dutee has inspired many young athletes from Telangana to take to this sport. “Today, we see our athletes winning medals in the Nationals, beating the athletes from Kerala. Dutee has been a great inspiration to the young athletes here in the state,” he said.

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