‘Should’ve won gold’

A proud owner of two consecutive Olympic medals Indian hockey star PR Sreejesh says the bronze claimed in Tokyo three years ago is closer to his heart than the one fetched in Paris as the former was like a mythical tale coming true after decades of merely hearing about itThe 36yearold goalkeeper who bid adieu to his international career at the end of Indiarsquos Paris campaign was in fact a shade disappointed with the colour of the medal this time as he felt the team should have done betterldquoTokyo for sure because we won an Olympic medal after a long time Earlier we used to hear what an Olympic medal means as hockey has a rich history of gold silver and bronze medals But it never came in our hands So when we got it for the first time that was a momentrdquo Sreejesh told PTI when asked to make the difficult choice here on TuesdayldquoThat time we were not sure about winning a medal but this time we were in top six and capable of beating any team But in Tokyo to become a medallist was a dreamrdquo he explained the differenceAlso ReadIOA exploring further legal options after CAS dismisses Vinesh Phogats plea41year wait before TokyoIndiarsquos hockey team had not won an Olympic medal in 41 years when it entered the Tokyo GamesCut to Paris the side were expected to be among the Top 2 which made a laudable third place finish look a bit disappointing and Sreejesh agreedldquothis time we had that hope that we are going to be number one I feel it is a big disappointment not to get a gold it should have been a gold The big difference is there in Tokyo I was happy but here I was likerdquo he shrugged unable to find the right words for his emotions in Paris where he also ended up being the Indian contingentrsquos flagbearer in the closing ceremonyThe Paris bronze was Indiarsquos 13th Olympic medal in hockey It was also the first time since 1972 that the nation won backtoback medals in hockeyThe charismatic goalkeeper who became a unifying force for the team during the campaign was rock solid in his role throughout and was deservedly given a farewell to rememberSuper sendoffHis voice became shaky more than once as he recalled those moments which included him sitting on the goalpost while his teammates bowed to him and being carried on the shoulders by skipper Harmanpreet Singh at the end of the bronze medal matchHockey India retires Sreejeshrsquos No 16 jersey at senior level names him junior coachHockey India decided to retire the jersey number of goalkeeping stalwart PR Sreejesh at the senior level after he bid adieu to the game following his starring role in the countryrsquos second consecutive Olympic bronze at the justconcluded Paris GamesldquoSreejesh is now going to be the junior team coach and we are retiring the No 16 jersey for the senior team We are not retiring No 16 for the junior teamrdquo said Hockey India secretary general Bhola Nath Singh at a felicitation function for the veteran and other members of the teamldquoSreejesh dusra Sreejesh ko paida karega in junior team Sreejesh will groom another Sreejesh in the junior team who will wear the No 16 jerseyrdquo he addedThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever