After the victory, the star athlete spoke to NDTV in an exclusive interview. Here are the excerpts: Missing out on the 2022 Asian Games due to a doping offence had hurt MR Poovamma immensely, and the country’s most experienced quarter-miler couldn’t be happier after making the doubting Thomases eat humble pie by playing her part in a gold-winning performance by the Indian women’s 4x400m relay team at the Asian Games on Tuesday.
This was 36-year-old Poovamma’s third 4x400m relay gold at the Asian Games, having been part of the 2014 and 2018 teams.
Last Thursday, I had won a silver medal. Last time, we missed out on gold, so we wanted revenge. The Indian team should be back, so we proved that we are back with the gold medal, and we heard the National Anthem. That was the only gold medal, and hearing the National Anthem was very important for us. It is a very proud moment, so I’m very happy.
Because i was waiting for this medal, especially this gold medal, poovamma: There are no words to express it. Because in 2014 and 2018, I had won gold, so, in the women’s relay, we wanted to win gold.
Q: Poovamma, you make everyone seem younger in the team. Perhaps I should call you the senior citizen, but you make it look easy. Tell us a little bit about your journey with this bunch of young kids. Poovamma: See, now all the athletes are really mature, so there is no difference between the seniors and juniors. They are very talented. So we had a good team. I hope the next team will be different too. But the Indian team is back, so no one will beat us going forward. Q: Hope the next team will be different, that’ll be in LA? You’re hoping to run the 4x400m with a different team? That’s where my journey started. I was selected for the camp during the Beijing Olympics. From there, my career started in the camp. My dad used to shift to places where I could get training, so he used to travel up and down. My mother used to travel to every competition. She has never missed one. They have struggled a lot. Even I have suffered a lot of injuries. It is common in a sporting life. But the main thing is that we have to have the dedication and belief that we can do it. Nothing matters, whether it’s age or anything else. We can’t say that. Maybe even with a kid. Let’s see. I’m hoping for the best.
Because no one sees what’s going on in our lives, before that, we had a lot of struggles. Because it is difficult for her to travel, poovamma: No, she has not come to Japan. Because many young athletes, when they get injured or are not able to perform, usually quit the sport or don’t have the mindset to keep moving forward, poovamma: Yeah, it should be an inspiration to young athletes.
I had a different team in 2014, a different team in 2018 and a different team in 2026. Poovamma: Yeah, I started my career in 2002. My first international event was the 2005 World Youth Championship in Morocco. That was my first Olympics at the age of 18. She’s 70 now, and she still travels with me for every national event. Maybe, who knows, at the age of 40 I might be back at the Asian Games.
I had told my mom and dad to come. They said, “Go, win gold, and we will be there to receive you.
