Sushil eyeing return at Asian Championship

New Delhi: After missing the Dave Schultz Cup due to a shoulder injury, star Indian wrestler Sushil Kumar is now eyeing a return at the Asian Wrestling Championships starting from April 18 to 22.

"I suffered an injury on my shoulder and to my right hand which kept me out of action. But now I have completely recovered from it and doing my regular practice," Sushil said at a sports meet organised by Max Healthcare for cancer survivors, here. Sushil has not participated in any competition since his silver medal winning feat in London last year due to the shoulder injury that aggravated during the Olympics. The 29-year-old is confident of making a comeback in the senior Asian championships to be held at the K D Jadhav stadium here. "My preparations are directed towards the Asian Championships which will be played infront of our homecrowd. I hope to play in the competition," he said. Sharing the experiences of his father`s battle against cancer, Sushil said it was his father`s motivation that propelled him to deliver his best at the London Olympics last year. He recalled the time when the came to know about his father being diagnosed with the dreaded disease. "The name of the disease is frightening. It was difficult for me to concentrate on competitions. I was mentally very down. But my father was always positive. He told me to focus on my wrestling which I did," Sushil said. Despite being detected at the last stage, his father`s was successfully treated for cancer and is now fully fit. "My father now walks eight kilometres daily. We can successfully fight this disease. Sports help fight cancer," he said. The meet was attended by people who have successfully battled cancer and their family members. They also participated in events such as cricket and races. PTI