New Delhi, Sep 25 Antim Panghal does not merely want to win medals. The young Indian wrestler wants to create records that, in her own words, “won’t ever be broken”.
It is a reflection of the ambition that continues to drive her despite the setbacks that have punctuated her rise.
“I have to train more, I have to do it better. Wherever I haven’t got a medal, I have to get a medal there. I have to create records. Records that won’t be broken. They may break somewhere else, but not in India,” Antim told PTI in an interview.
It is a remarkably ambitious target for a wrestler who is still building her senior career, but Antim’s confidence is rooted in what she has already achieved.
She became India’s first U-20 world champion, is already a two-time senior World medallist and has an Asian Games bronze but she believes there is still plenty more to accomplish.
“I have become a junior world champion but no woman from India has won senior world champion. I want to do that,” she said.
For Antim, however, the pursuit is not entirely about personal glory.
In fact, when asked if she feels she still has something to prove as a wrestler, her answer revealed a different facet.
“No one has to prove anything to anyone else. Everyone does it for themselves. But I don’t do it for myself. I do it for the people who are with me,” she said.
Her family, coaches, partners and physiotherapist form the circle of people she has and she thinks about them whenever training becomes difficult.
“If something happens to me, I remember them and train. Or I remember the medal. I don’t do it for myself. If I have to do it for myself, I will have to quit,” Antim said.
The admission is perhaps as revealing as her lofty targets.
For Antim, wrestling has become a responsibility towards those who have invested their time, faith and effort in her career.
“It is everyone’s (dream). They want me to win medals. They have high hopes from me. They are my partners, my coach. They are always ready for me. I do it for them,” she said.
“For my parents, who brought me up, it is my duty that I do well for them.”
That sense of responsibility sits alongside an increasingly mature understanding of wrestling.
Antim feels she has changed considerably since winning the U-20 world title, particularly in the way she reads a bout.
Earlier, she says, she would continue attacking regardless of the score or situation. Now she is learning to pick her moments.
“Earlier I used to fight a simple bout. I didn’t see give much thought to where to attack, where to defend. Even if my points were more, I used to keep attacking,” she said.
“But now if my points go up, then I don’t (keep attacking). I wait there. Only if my rival tries hard then I will go on counter. I try not to make a mistake (of rushing).”
That evolution, she believes, is about reducing errors rather than eliminating them completely.
“I still make mistakes, but I try to reduce them from earlier. The mistake I made in one bout, the next bout, I work on it,” she said.
Her awareness of opponents has also grown. She expects the major challenges to come from the likes of China, Japan and DPR Korea, but refuses to classify any opponent as easy at the Asian Games.
“Everyone will be tough. It is not like that, that it will happen easily. There is such a big competition, so everyone will do their best,” she said.
The Japanese coach at the national camp has also helped sharpen certain technical aspects of her wrestling, particularly her attacks.
“He told me that instead of going on a frontal attack, if I move a little sideways, it will be more effective,” she said.
Antim says she has already seen results from those adjustments.
Her preparation is now also accompanied by a greater emphasis on recovery and diet, something she admits she did not always manage perfectly.
“Sometimes, I over-train . But I also take care of my recovery. What to do, when to take rest, when to do things. I take care of everything. I also take care of my diet,” she said.
The expectations surrounding her have not diminished. If anything, they have grown with every major achievement. Antim, though, insists that expectations do not weigh her down.
“No, I don’t take any pressure,” she said.
She knows that people expect her to give her best because they see how hard she trains.
That is perhaps the simplest explanation of Antim’s approach: train harder, make fewer mistakes, keep improving and, eventually, turn ambition into history.
(PTI News)
