By Paritosh Pramanik
THEY spent a sleepless night before their son, Nagpur’s very own Ojas Pravin Deotale, clinched India’s maiden gold medal in the compound mixed team event at the Hangzhou Asian Games on Wednesday morning. The 21-year-old reigning world champion Ojas, partnering with Jyothi Surekha Vennam downed second-seeded Korean pair of So Chaewon and Joo Jaehoon 159-158 to clinch the gold medal for India.
Ojas’ parents — father Pravin and mother Archana — could not sleep the whole night as they were anxious for their son’s final event. They were sure of their son giving his best for the country but were still apprehensive.
“We could not sleep the whole night. I was looking at the clock every minute...waiting for the alarm to ring,” said Pravin while talking with ‘The Hitavada’ after Ojas’ gold winning feat.
“We still got up as early as 5 am and were in front of the TV,” he added.
There were tears of joy in the Deotale couple’s eyes as the national anthem was played at the archery range in Hangzhou. With the gold medal dangling around a smiling Ojas’ neck, his father Pravin felt over the moon.
“That moment brought out all of Ojas’ childhood memories. They way he shifted from skating to archery, his daily tantrums where he used to break brooms to make bow and arrow, to going for coaching under Zeeshan sir at Bada Tajbagh...all those memories filled my heart,” said Pravin, a civil contractor.
“I was overwhelmed when the national anthem was played. What a proud moment it was. For once, we felt that we should have been there (at Hangzhou) to celebrate the moment,” said Pravin, who never stopped his son from taking his decision in life.
On Tuesday night, Ojas had called his mother Archana and talked for about 15 minutes. “He was a little nervous. It was a big final and he was feeling pressure. He said to me ‘What will happen tomorrow. I am feeling nervous. I want to win gold for my country.’
“I calmed him down and said that you have done all the right things till now and have worked hard to reach where you are. You have to go and do what you are doing regularly. Give your best and you will achieve success,” Archana narrated her talk with Ojas.
“I told him not to think about the result and enjoy the moment. Whatever be the outcome you will remain the champion for us. Those words calmed Ojas a bit. He said ‘Aai you are not like other parents who put pressure on their wards to win gold. You always tell me to enjoy the moment and celebrate the outcome’. This, I think, helped him settle a bit,” stated Archana.
That 15-minute pep-talk gave a world of confidence to Ojas helping him claim the gold medal.
Ojas, who became India’s first male archer to be crowned world champion this August, has another chance to claim a gold medal in the individual event on Saturday.
“We are sure that he will make India proud again. He is a hard worker and dedicates himself fully to the task,” said Pravin.
Ojas was into skating when he was a kid but his interest grew in archery while in school.
“He told me that he wanted to play archery. Earlier, it was leisure but gradually he started gaining interest in the bow arrow sport. He started going for coaching at Trimurti Nagar NIT ground and then shifted to Bada Tajbagh under Zeeshan,” Pravin shared Ojas’ journey.
“Even though archery was not that popular, I never stopped him from playing it. I only wanted him to play at least one sport,” said Pravin, who himself attended NCC shooting camp in New Delhi.
“Ojas has inherited ‘aim’ sport from his forefathers. My grandfather and father were fond of rifle shooting. I still love rifle shooting. I was a 7.62 rifle snap shooter and won a silver medal at the RD parade. I did not get proper coaching hence could not pursue my dream. Ojas got proper coaching and guidance at the right time which helped him achieve the glory,” Pravin concluded.
No comments:
Post a Comment