India's star grappler Vinesh Phogat overcame her Tokyo Olympics' demons to make one of the sensational comebacks in the history of wrestling and clinched the elusive gold medal in the just concluded Birmingham Commonwealth Games (CWG).
It was a hat-trick of gold in CWG for the Haryana-born wrestler who earlier won gold in Glasgow and Gold Coast. It was a welcome win for the Indian wrestler, who had a disappointing outing at the Tokyo Olympics and crashed out in the quarter-finals after 2016 Rio Olympics' ouster. She has been struggling with form and fitness since then.
Meanwhile, in an exclusive interview with Sports Today, Vinesh reflected on the low phase of her career which pushed her to the threshold of quitting wrestling, long before she resurrected herself with CWG glory.
"Definitely, you can say that (Vinesh 2.0 reloaded). I have managed to cross a big mental barrier. I almost gave up wrestling because in two Olympics I couldn't win a medal. Olympics is the biggest stage for an athlete. But my family always backed me, they always trust in my abilities," the star grappler said.
Vinesh also spoke about what motivated her to make a comeback after hitting the rockbottom of her career.
"When I was low, I met Modi ji (Narendra Modi) and he gave me motivation. He said 'we trust you and you can do it'. That reignited the spark in me," she added.
Vinesh said the support she got from her family and fans also kept her motivated to keep going after hitting the rock bottom of career.
"Since childhood I like sports. I always play from my heart, I don't have any pressure from anyone. I feel happy when I win. I always have the passion to win. My family is always supportive of what I am doing," she said.
"This is a new experience," Vinesh said. "The athletes are going through many things and many emotions. Sometimes we break down and sometimes we are happy, so every medal is special.
Earlier, right after winning the gold medal at CWG 2022, she detailed the agony and the unfair reactions from the world when she lost the Tokyo Olympics bout in an emotional newspaper column and remained on the sidelines for more than 5 months after the heartbreak in the Japanese capital.
However, she picked herself up and qualified for the Commonwealth Games and she made merry in Birmingham.
“It has been an up and down journey. A few athletes struggle physically, and a few mentally. I struggled with both. But, I have seen from a young age, I get the results at the end of the day but I get them after going through a lot of struggles. I am not afraid of going through struggles,” Vinesh had said.
