Paris 2024: Rhythm, fitness key in three-year Olympic cycle for India athletes

As the Olympic Games is back to its leap year cycle in Paris after a brief disruption due to the pandemic-delayed Tokyo Games, the preparatory phase for the athletes has come down by a year.

Sportstar spoke to different sportspersons and coaches to understand the impact a shorter cycle had on their preparation for the Games.

For ace archer Deepika Kumari, approaching her fourth Olympics, years have moved quickly due to her marriage and motherhood.

“For me, it feels like I competed a month ago (in Tokyo). It is fresh. I didn’t get a chance [to think about it]. It feels like someone has fast-forwarded time. It is new for me. Obviously, it makes a difference. Everything happened so fast,” said Deepika, who was the only Indian woman archer to qualify for the Tokyo Games.

Now, with the Indian women’s team booking a spot in the Paris Games, Deepika is delighted. “The team qualification is welcome.”

Tokyo silver medal winning lifter Mirabai Chanu tried to get rid of her injuries during the three-year gap.

Coach Vijay Sharma, who has been training Mirabai for over a decade now and guides her before her third Olympics, acknowledged the challenges she faced in recent years.

READ | When have the Olympics not been held on schedule?

“It’s all about an athlete’s rhythm. The qualification system this time was tough. Staying away from injuries was the biggest challenge for us. Because of her experience, Mira is relaxed this time prior to the Games,” said Sharma.

The Indian men’s hockey team had a different experience altogether. With Craig Fulton taking over from Graham Reid as the head coach last year, the side raced against time.

For Fulton, who joined the Indian team a little over a year back, the first task was to help the side win the Asian Games gold and qualify in about three months time. Besides, making the team adapt to his style of play, which focused on defence as against Reid’s stress on attacks, was a bigger challenge.

“We had to move very quickly to try and select a team and then try and understand the way I’d like to play, and then still give players opportunities to play that style and then pick a tournament team,” said Fulton.

Individually, for midfielder Manpreet Singh, who is also approaching his fourth Olympics, the shorter cycle did not matter.

“It doesn’t make a difference. I never thought about it (the four-year cycle). Personally, I want to keep myself fit. Whether it’s four years or three years, I want to maintain my body. Fitness is very important in hockey these days. I have been doing it for a long time. I will continue doing it,” said Manpreet.