Sakshi Malik: ‘Winning an Olympic medal feels surreal’

"With proper encouragement and training, anyone from any background can be successful. I am sure my success in wrestling will not only encourage other families to promote their daughters but also raise the profile of wrestling in Rohtak and surrounding areas," Sakshi Malik says.

"Olympics was a dream, winning a medal was a dream and I am happy that I did it in my very first Olympics," Sakshi says.

Sakshi Malik won her, and India’s first Olympic medal in the Rio Olympics, on August 17. She returned home a week later. Ever since, her house in Rohtak (Haryana) remains packed with byte-hungry media men, wanting to explore every facet of her life and her family. Politicians and officials are there in large number too, eager to cash in on the wrestler’s new-found popularity. In the middle of all this frenzy and non-stop roll of cameras, Sportstar managed to corner the 23-year old for an interview on life and wrestling, in Rio and thereafter:

Excerpts:

Question: You have been home for two days now. Has the reality of your achievement in Rio sunk in?

Answer:Ab dheere, dheere ehsaas ho raha hai, par puri tarah se abhi bhi nahi hua (Now, I am gradually realising it, but even now not completely). I was confident of my abilities, but now I understand how much it meant for the entire country, how much faith the nation had put in me.

It is always difficult to come back from a losing position. After you lost in the quarterfinals, you had to wait for the repechage draws and then fight quick back-to-back bouts. What was going on in your mind at that time?

It was a mix of everything — there was nervousness, excitement, pressure, tension — I can’t explain all the emotions that I went through that day. I knew that I had to do something, achieve something, there was no other option. Losing was not an option, giving up was not an option till the very end. Yahi socha tha ki bas, kuch to karna hi hai (All I thought was, I had to do something).

 

It was more than 10 days since the Olympics had started, and India was yet to win a medal by the time your event came. There was disappointment every day in various sports. Did that affect you in any way?

Of course yes. Every athlete goes through negative feelings and thoughts when things are going bad around them. It’s not that others were not trying, but the fact that the country was yet to win a medal did make it a bit tough for those of us who competed later. But then, it is up to every athlete to think positive and keep motivating themselves. I kept reminding myself of what I wanted to do and all that I had done to reach that level. The coaches also kept motivating me.

How was the feeling of stepping on the podium and getting a medal, seeing the unfurling of the Indian national flag?

It was very special. The feeling of winning a medal at the Olympics is surreal. I had been working for 12 years for this. Olympics was a dream, winning a medal was a dream and I am happy that I did it in my very first Olympics.

Now that you have put Rohtak on the wrestling map, do you think there will be more women, especially from this area, taking up wrestling? It is after all not a wrestling stronghold…

Bilkul ayengi (definitely they will come). I did not have a background in wrestling and had no idea of mat wrestling or Olympic events or rules or anything at all. I learnt about the various big international events, including the Olympics, the World Cups etc, only after coming to the national camps. This proves that with proper encouragement and training, anyone from any background can be successful. I am sure my success in wrestling will not only encourage other families to promote their daughters but also raise the profile of wrestling in Rohtak and surrounding areas.