JOIN USPramila credits success to husband
Pramila ended a 12-year wait for an Asian medal by finishing third in heptathlon last week in Guangzhou.
“I am feeling great. I am feeling emotional. I’ve waited for this moment for 12 years,” a teary-eyed Pramila said on Monday at a function where she was honoured by the Karnataka Athletics Association.
Pramila scored 5415 points to finish behind Uzbekistan’s Yuliya Tarasova (5783) and Yuki Nakata (5606) of Japan. The 33-year-old was all praise for husband Aiyappa BP, also her coach, for supporting and motivating her to continue in the sport even after a fifth-place finish at the CWG. “I have a great husband and coach who motivated me each and every second,” Pramila said, with five-year-old daughter Unnathi in her arms.
“I missed my daughter a lot. So now I am taking a break for a month or so. I just wanted to spend some time with the family,” Pramila added. Pramila said she still hasn’t figured out what went wrong in Delhi.
“I am still searching for answers about the CWG failure. I trained really hard there too. I was desperate to win a medal at the Asian Games. This medal is compensation for my CWG disappointment,” said Pramila.
Pramila, who couldn’t win a medal in the Sydney and Beijing Olympics, feels Indians can win medals at the London Olympics with hard work and will power. “I am more confident now and many athletes are on a high. I think we can win medals at the London Olympics with hard work,” said Pramila.
Pramila said she was yet to get her rewards even after years of sacrifice on the athletic track for the country. “For the last five years, I have been applying for a BDA site but I am yet to receive one,” she said.
KAA officials revealed that Pramila and AC Ashwini, who won gold medals in the 400M hurdles and 4x400M relay events, would be presented with cash awards at a later date.