Hyderabad: For Agasara Nandini winning a medal in the women’s heptathlon in her maiden Asian Games at Hangzhou is a huge moment.
The 20-year-old from Hyderabad was at fifth place with 4,824 points after the sixth round on the leaderboard. But the youngster proved her mettle in the 800 metres and secured 5,712 points to clinch the bronze medal. China’s Zheng Ninali (6,149) and Voronina Ekaterina (6,056) of Uzbekistan bagged gold and silver respectively.
“This is a big moment for me and my family. I am delighted and proud to win a medal for my country. This is the day I worked hard for. I hope to make my country proud again in future by winning more,” said an elated Nandini.
“I am also proud that the Indian team has been doing so well in the Asian Games and winning laurels in many events,” added Nandini, who is pursuing her BBA second year at Telangana Social Welfare Residential Degree College for Women in Sangareddy.
Telangana Social Welfare Residential Educational Institutions Society secretary Dr E. Naveen Nicolas termed Nandini’s win as an inspiration for their students. “Nandini is a fine athlete and she proved herself by winning a bronze in her maiden Asian Games. She is making her mark with every opportunity she gets. She is a source of inspiration for all the students of TSWREIS. I wish her all the success in her future endeavors,” said Nicolas.
'Swapna stirs controversy':
In the early hours on Monday, a major controversy broke out in the Indian squad as Swapna Barman, who finished behind Nandini in the heptathlon with an aggregate of 5,708 points, alleged that she lost a medal to a transgender woman at the Asian Games.
Barman, the 2018 gold medalist in the Jakarta edition posted on her ‘X’ platform formerly known as twitter: “I have lost my Asian Games bronze medal to transgender women at the 19th Asian Games held in Hangzhou, China. I want my medal back as it is against the rules of our athletics. Help me and support me please. #protestforfairplay.” Later, she deleted the post.
In response to that Nandini said: “Winning bronze at the continental showpiece event is a positive moment. There are hundreds of people supporting me and wishing well. I want to focus on the positivity of those who are cheering for me. But I will definitely take it up with the (Indian athletics) Federation. They will take care of that.”
K. Sarangapani, secretary of Telangana Athletics Association, stated these allegations should not be entertained and it is not sportsmanship. “Making such allegations is wrong and they should not be tolerated. It might be out of jealousy. Making these kind of derogatory statements will degrade the athletic fraternity,” he said.
