New Delhi: India`s Olympic bronze medallist Saina Nehwal Friday said her medal at the London Games would motivate her to attain greater heights in badminton.
At a ceremony organised here by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and Samsung India to felicitate the 2012 Olympic medallists, she said she wanted to bring more laurels to the country and do one better in Rio four years from now.
"This medal will provide me with the motivation to do bigger things. When I play in the next Olympics I don`t have the pressure of not winning a medal and that would lessen the burden," Saina said.
"I hope I stay fit and bring more glory to my country. I have a few tournaments coming up, I will concentrate on doing well there first."
Saina said she had still to overcome the Chinese barrier and the challenges would be much tougher in the days to come.
"In London I beat one Chinese and lost to one. There were only four Chinese in the Olympics while in the super series and other tournaments there would be close to 10 of them, so there are tougher days ahead."
Also present at the ceremony, bronze medallist shooter Gagan Narang said his aim was also to carry on till the next Olympics and bring home a medal of a different hue.
"I am extremely happy. I narrowly missed out on a medal in Beijing and I had my own demons to overcome. I have finally done that.
"But this is just the starting point for me. I am looking forward to Rio. Hopefully we can hear the national anthem the next time I am on the podium," said a beaming Narang.
Other medallists Sushil Kumar (silver, wrestling), Vijay Kumar (silver, shooting), M.C. Mary Kom (bronze, boxing) and Yogeshwar Dutt (bronze, wrestling) also made an appearance. The two silver medallists were given a cash award of Rs.15 lakh each while the bronze winners were given Rs.10 lakh each.
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.