New Delhi: Gracious in defeat, young Indian wrestler Ravi Dahiya on Thursday said perhaps he deserved only a silver medal at the Olympics at this stage and will strive to get better to complete the unfinished task of winning a gold at the 2024 Paris Games.
“I did not come to Tokyo for a silver medal. It will not give me satisfaction. Maybe this time I deserved only a silver because Uguev was a better wrestler today,” Dahiya said from the Japanese capital. “I could not achieve what I wanted to,” he said, disappointment palpable in his voice.
“His style was very good. I just could not find a way to play my game. I don’t know what I could have done. He wrestled very smartly,” the two-time reigning Asian champion said. His coach Mahabali Satpal said Dahiya was fighting from the front and the coaches in Tokyo should have advised him to wrestle from the sides.
“The coaches (Jagmander Singh) there should have told him to change the strategy. The Russian was beatable, Ravi is a better wrestler than him, it’s a golden chance that has been missed for a historic gold,” rued Satpal, who has coached Dahiya since he was 12.
When told that his silver-winning effort also means a lot to Indian wrestling, Dahiya did not seem excited. “Wo to theek hai but I can’t sit on a silver. I have to stay focused and work on my technique and get ready for next Olympics Games,” he said.
Also read: Tokyo Olympics: Wrestler Ravi Dahiya takes silver after losing final
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