With not much time left for Olympic Games qualification, India’s best woman sprinter Dutee Chand is feeling the heat. She had missed the qualification mark by one hundredth of a second at the Federation Cup here last month, and again narrowly at the Indian Grand Prix in Patiala. She, though, feels encouraged by her good timings and hopes to achieve the mark in coming competitions.
The 20-year-old, however, was left a bit disappointed after her request to train abroad was overlooked by the authorities.
“I wanted to train abroad but the authorities didn’t believe in me. There is not much focus in 100M qualification in India, and they (officials) wouldn’t like to spend on me alone. After I came so close to achieving the Olympic mark in Federation Cup, I again went to SAI officials and repeated my request. They asked me to send the details, but at the end nothing happened,” Dutee told Deccan Herald.
“Everyone knew I was to go to US in May with my coach (N Ramesh) but instead I was asked to come to Patiala to join the relay team. I know no one will send me, they just do lip service. Now with two months left, I don’t even have time. One month will go in the competitions only.”
Dutee had recorded 11.33 seconds to narrowly miss 11.32 qualifying standard for the Rio Olympics. In the Indian Grand Prix in Patiala, she once again missed the mark by finishing at 11.37 on her way to another gold medal.
Her eyes though are trained on the upcoming competitions beginning with the IAAF World Challenge in Beijing on May 18 followed by the Taiwan Open on May 19-20. Dutee would be participating in both 100M and 4x100M relay. She would also be participating in competitions in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan in June.
“Right now I am feeling the pressure of qualifying for the Olympics. I am satisfied with the way I have trained in the last one year, I feel good after my performance in these two events. I am confident that I will qualify in either the Inter-State championships or in Beijing,” said Dutee, who is pursuing a degree in law.
The Odisha girl has come a long way since winning her landmark case in the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against the IAAF rules on hyperandrogenism. While it remains a high point in her nascent career, fear tends to revisit.
“It was a very painful phase but it has made me very alert. I feel it is very important for athletes to know law. I didn’t know what tests I was made to go through, I was framed.
The case was an eye-opener. “People can again get me trapped but I know this time I have a lot of support. My only focus now is my training. “It would be a very big thing for me qualify for Olympics, but it is the medal which inspires me,” she smiled.
DH News Service
