NEW DELHI, August 3: India’s ace badminton player P.V. Sindhu was on Tuesday felicitated by Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Anurag Thakur on her return home from Tokyo after becoming the first Indian woman to win two Olympic Games medals.
Sindhu won bronze in badminton singles event on Sunday to add to her silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games in the same category.
Thakur was joined by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Union Minister of Culture, Tourism and Development of North-Eastern Region G. Kishan Reddy and Minister of State of Youth Affairs and Sports, Nisith Pramanik, as well as senior officers of the sports ministry like secretary (sports) Ravi Mittal.
“PV Sindhu is among India’s greatest Olympians. She is India’s icon, inspiration and has caught the imagination of every Indian who dreams of playing for the country. Her incredible achievement — that of winning two Olympic medals in two consecutive Olympic Games will inspire a generation of budding athletes,” said Thakur on the occasion.
“Her success shows how the Target Olympic Podium scheme of the government has nurtured our Olympic hopefuls towards a podium finish. Just before setting off for Tokyo Olympics, she had an interaction with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and right after her victory he was the first person to call her and congratulate her. The nation of 130 crore Indians is thrilled by her smashing performance!”
A visibly elated Sindhu said she was disappointed that she could not make it to the final but was happy with winning a medal in the second successive Olympic Games.
“I would like to thank each one of my fans because of the support and though we played without fans in the stadium, I am sure billions have supported me from India and this success is the result of their wishes. I would like to thank my parents, for their constant support and sacrifices, and my coach for working with me and making this dream come true,” she said.
IANS