Fresh from his New York Diamond League bronze show, discus thrower Vikas Gowda now eyes Olympic glory
Discus thrower Vikas Gowda is confident he can bring glory to India at the London Olympics, based on his bronze-winning effort at last month’s IAAF Diamond League.
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Indian discus thrower Vikas Gowda during the 2010 CWGu00a0in New Delhi. PIC/AFP
Gowda’s mighty throw of 64.86m was bettered by Hungarian Zoltan Kovago (66.36m) and Spaniard Frank Yennifer Kasanas (65.21m) at the New York event, but the 29-year-old believed the experience puts him in good stead for the July 27 mega event.
Gowda’s coach John Godina
“My confidence level going to London is very good. Competing against the best in the world in the Diamond League was a great experience. My expectation is to compete well. I’m confident of my abilities and am a different thrower than what I was in Beijing,” Gowda, who finished 22nd in the 2008 Beijing qualifiers, told MiD DAY via email from the USA.
“The eastern Europeans will be a tough challenge, but I think I am up for the challenge,” added Gowda, who is supported by Olympic Gold Quest (OGQ).
Gowda is currently ranked 10th in the world, and he credited his coach John Godina — a former world champion and Olympic medallist — for his improved form. “Training with John (Godina) at the World Throws Center in Phoenix (Arizona) has helped my throwing a lot. I have been training here since December 2009. Since then, I have performed well at the 2010 Commonwealth Games (silver medal) and 2010 Asian Games (bronze).
“John is one of the greatest shot put and discus throwers of all time. His knowledge about these events is immense. I couldn’t ask for a better training environment,” the Mysore-born thrower said of his American coach. Godina won silver in the 1996 Atlanta Games and bronze in the 2000 Sydney Games. u00a0
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