Tag: olympic games

Planning to send Indian contingent in advance for Tokyo Olympics: Kiren Rijiju | Tokyo Olympics News – Times of India

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NEW DELHI: Union Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju on Friday said that the ministry is planning to send the Indian Olympic contingent in advance for the Tokyo Games so that the athletes get acclimatise to the conditions.
“Only three months are left for the Olympic Games. Athletes are giving their best to book their seats for the Olympics and do well for the country. The ministry is also planning to send the Olympic team in advance so that they would get time to adjust to the climate over there. They will be able to train in those conditions which will help them during the competition,” Rijiju told ANI.
“Arrangements are being made for our athletes and their team (technical), they will be put up in different locations in Japan. Right now, some of them are still participating in tournaments. There are some qualification events happening.
“But we have made a detailed plan for it. I have spoken to the Indian Olympic Association and we have a committee headed by me to plan and prepare for the Olympics and the entire management. The athletes will be able to train and practice wherever they will stay,” he added.
Ace wrestler Bajrang Punia on Thursday said that he has already received his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. This has led to the raising of a few eyebrows as there hasn’t been any official announcement on starting of vaccination of Olympic-bound athletes.
However, Rijiju said Punia wanted to feel secure and that’s why he went ahead and got himself vaccinated.
“For vaccination, we are in discussion with the health ministry. He (Bajrang) must have thought that because there is a delay, he wanted to be secure. I cannot make any comment right now but we are worried about the safety of all the players,” Rijiju said.
The Tokyo Olympics, originally slated to take place last year but got postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, will be held from July 23 to August 8, this year.

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Tour of Argentina and Germany has helped plan on areas we need to improve, says Deep Grace Ekka | Hockey News – Times of India

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BENGALURU: The Indian women’s hockey team’s recent tours to Argentina and Germany respectively have been crucial in their preparations for the Olympic Games, feels experienced defender Deep Grace Ekka.
“Playing against Argentina and Germany, both highly ranked in the world, with very different and unique playing styles has been very helpful in planning the areas we need to improve in the days leading up to the Olympics,” said Ekka in an official Hockey India release.
“World No.3 Argentina plays man-to-man, and their style is quite conventional. Personally, for me, playing against Germany was quite intriguing because of their style and attacking game. There was a lot to learn about how the German players communicate on the field and how they create space in pursuit of circle entries. Their attack is aggressive, they are quick and think on their feet,” she added.
Grace feels this experience against Germany will help them take on World No.1 Netherlands in their opening match at the Olympic Games.
“I felt that Germany and the Netherlands have a very similar style. They tackle two-on-one and the way they attack is very similar. I feel we have gained a lot of confidence playing against Argentina and Germany. We have no inhibitions or fear in our mind when we play these top teams now and another key element has been our fitness. We don’t tire easily anymore and that will help us bounce back in the game and finish well even if there are early setbacks,” she said.
Another takeaway from the recent tours is the team’s improved show in penalty corner defending. “I feel we have improved a lot in our PC defending. Though we need to avoid giving away penalty corners, we have improved in defending PCs. If we have given away 5-6 penalty corners in a match, we restrict conversion to 1 or at the most 2 which was not the case earlier,” she said.
Grace credits this positive improvement to the team’s analytical coach Jenneke Schopman. “Since Jenneke has joined the team, we have paid a lot of attention to PC defending and earlier, we would just take positions but now she’s helped us work on our movements while defending a PC and that has made a lot of difference,” she said.

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