Bangalore (Karnataka) [India], March 30 (ANI): Tokyo 2020 Olympian Maana Patel mentioned she goals to carry out nicely within the Asian Games qualifiers and qualify for the multi-nation continental sporting occasion with a quicker time, including that she she has been feeling at her strongest bodily and mentally in final couple of years.
In an unique interview with ANI, Maana talked about successful silver in Singapore National Age Group Championship this month, the stress and accountability of being an Olympian, preparation for Paris 2024 Olympics and Asian Games 2022, which is able to happen in China from September-October this yr and far more.
“I believe in short-term goals and taking baby steps. My goal for this year is to perform well in Asian Games qualifiers so that I can enter Asian Games with a faster-time. This is the strongest I have felt physically and mentally in the last couple of years. There is a lot of scope for improvement. I am ready to give my 100 per cent this year,” Maana instructed ANI.
On how the postponement of Asian Games because of the Covid-19 pandemic and the pandemic itself affected her preparation, Maana mentioned the circumstances then was not underneath anybody’s management.
“One has to look at the brighter side. Of course, there was disappointment that you have to start all over again from zero, reschedule your training and re-strategise everything. But I took everything in a positive stride and was happy to have that extra bit of time in my hands,” mentioned the Olympian.
On her silver win in 50 m and 100 m backstroke senior class on the 53rd Singapore National Age Group Championship held from March 14-19 in Singapore, Maana mentioned successful silver was not her purpose, slightly, it was to know the place she stood when it comes to her timing firstly of the season in order that she may make mandatory changes to her race and coaching accordingly.
On her coaching regime, Manna mentioned she does it by way of coaching blocks.
“We have six weeks of training blocks. We train as per the training block before a competition. The gym and pool training varies, as per the goal and the time that we wish to achieve. The Singapore race was the first competition we trained for. We did not rest or do tapering either. I wanted to see where I stood. I have my main competition in June-July and wanted to see what I could add to my training and improve so that I can peak in June-July. I have recently introduced new training methods in the gym and want to see how well it goes and what else we can do, going forward,” added the swimmer.
On stress and obligations that include the ‘Olympian’ tag, the one girl to symbolize India at Tokyo 2020 Olympics, mentioned, “In Tokyo, I was the only girl with two boys. Olympics is the pinnacle when it comes to multilateral sporting events. It is a dream for any athlete to represent the country at the Olympics. It was surreal to race with the best swimmers in the world. There is pressure and I succumbed to it on race day as I could not perform as per my expectations. However, you learn how to deal with pressure when you have been at the biggest stage. The tag of Olympian does not come easily. It comes with lots of responsibilities, one of which is to inspire the next generation and imparting the values she imbibed while participating at the Olympics.”On help from the federal government and different companies, Manna mentioned, “The government has supported me from the start. I represent Gujarat at the national level and the Gujarat government has been proactive in supporting athletes since 2013. I am grateful for all the support I have received. The Centre has also taken a lot of steps, such as organising the ‘Khelo India’ and encouraging people to take up sports. They are doing a great job. I have also partnered with ENGN, which has been covering my additional expenses and promoting me as a brand. Their model of supporting woman athletes is one of a kind.” (ANI)