Hyderabad: Odisha sprinter Dutee Chand arrived in Hyderabad — her second home — to a rousing reception at the airport on Saturday after winning two silver medals at the Asian Games in Jakarta.
Trainees of the Pullela Gopichand Badminton Academy where she has been staying since 2015 and members of the athletics fraternity garlanded Dutee and her Hyderabad-based coach N. Ramesh amidst scenes of joy.
Later, Dutee spoke about the Hyderabad connection in her career. “I am very thankful to Ramesh sir who believed that I could be an achiever in the field of sports. His dedication and training has been phenomenal,” the 22-year-old said, adding, “He used to travel 35 kilometres on a two-wheeler from his residence to pick me up from the Gopichand Academy and take me to training sessions at the GMC Balayogi Stadium in Gachibowli.”
“I am also grateful to Gopichand, his mother and all the staffers at the Academy who have made my stay here very comfortable,” she said.
“The car announced by V. Chamundeswarnath (Badminton Association of Telangana vice-president) was also a motivating factor to do well,” Dutee said in jest. Ramesh said Dutee’s feat would inspire youngsters to take up athletics.
