Vinesh Phogat reckons Indian coaches aren’t good enough to produce Olympic winners

Asian Games gold-medallist Vinesh Phogat said that Indian coaches weren’t good enough good enough to prepare athletes for gaining the top prize at the Olympics.

“Indian coaches are giving results. But for an event like the Olympics, where the level of competition is very high, we need foreign coaches who can plan each day and discuss every aspect of our game like speed, stamina and strength besides technique,” said Phogat as quoted by the Hindustan Times.

Vinesh, a gold medallist at the 2014 and 2018 Commonwealth Games said that she was in the lookout for a personal coach to help her bag the gold medal at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

“Hungarian Waller Ako helped me fill the gap (before the Asian Games) and gave me some useful lessons. Those instructions mattered a lot in Jakarta. I feel that in order to win an Olympic medal, I’ll need the help of a personal coach like Waller.

“Before the Asian Games, I went to Hungary and overcame the shortcomings. My gold at the Spanish Grand Prix was the result of that training. If I get the same training over the next two years, I will certainly win an Olympic medal,” she added.

She opened up on her heart-breaking loss at the 2016 Rio Olympics, saying that the defeat has taught her many lessons.

“I used to play aggressive, and I paid the price for it in Rio. Now, I know how to challenge a rival. Even in the final at the Asian Games, I held myself for long in crunch situations,” she said.

She even revealed that she had thought of retiring from the sport due to a strict training regimen.

“Several times, I thought of quitting the sport after a tough training session. But I did not want to let people down who had faith in my abilities… so I started training with passion and zeal,” she said.

Vinesh also said that she wanted to end the season on a good note with a maiden medal at the World Championships at Budapest, which gets underway from October 20-28.

She said, “I would like to win my first gold at Budapest and finish the season in style. This is my biggest aim for the season.”

Also read: Gurnihal’s silver, bronze add to India’s medal tally at the ISSF World Championship