JOIN USWalker KT Irfan, who surprised everyone with his creditable 10th place finish at the London Games in the 20km walk race, is a new addition to the list of talented sportspersons supported by the Olympic Gold Quest.
The 22-year-old Kerala-based athlete, who sold off a piece of his ancestral property to meet expenses during his five-month training for the London Games, clocked an impressive 1 hour, 20 minutes and 21 seconds - the new national mark - in the Olympics.
“I am very happy to be part of the OGQ family and I will give my best to bring laurels to my country,” said the havaldar with the Madras Regimental Centre.
“If I have to improve my performance at the Rio 2016 Olympics, then I have to start my preparations from now. OGQ support will be instrumental in improving my technique and ensuring that I remain in peak fitness for major competitions,” a press release quoted him as saying.
Along with Irfan, OGQ - founded by sports legends Prakash Padukone and Geet Sethi - has also decided to support two other youngsters - pistol shooter Amanpreet Singh and javelin thrower Rajesh Bind.
Jalandhar-born Amanpreet is the current national champion in 10M Air Pistol and also one of India’s top shooters in the 50M Free Pistol event. UP-born Bind is a promising 18-year-old javelin thrower who trains at the Army Sports Institute in Pune and is the current junior national record holder with an impressive throw of 80.14M and is only the third Indian and the first junior in the country to cross the 80M mark.