There is a perfect blend of great poise and power from start to finish in Dutee Chand’s running, states Nagpuri Ramesh
Athletics coach Nagpuri Ramesh has asserted that Indian sprinter Dutee Chand has a perfect blend of great poise and power in her running. Ramesh has also added that qualifying cycles for the World Championships has also started and Chand is determined to meet the mark for the global event.
With the World Athletics Championships going to be held in September this year in Doha, sprinter Dutee Chand and her coach Nagpuri Ramesh are all charged up for the event. The duo is having an aim that Chand qualifies for the Worlds as well as for the Tokyo Olympics to be held next year. The qualifying mark for the World Championships is 11.24 seconds while that for the Olympics is 11.15 seconds.
According to the coach, the 23-year-old Odisha athlete has become much more polished after gaining experience in her career and has a perfect blend of great power and poise in her running.
“With experience, she is a much more polished and feared runner in the circuit. From start to finish, there is a perfect blend of great poise and power,” Ramesh told Sportstar.
“Yes, the qualifying cycle for the Worlds has begun this month and will end in August. So, she is determined to meet the qualifying mark. Dutee, silver medallist in 100 m and 200 m in the last Asiad and a bronze medallist (200 m) in the recent Asian championship, will be pushing herself in 200 m so as to make her more comfortable in 100 m.”Â
Dutee will now participate in the upcoming World University Games in Italy and looking forward to clock below 11.15 seconds there in 100m race. She is now training hard under the guidance of her coach Ramesh at the GMC Balayogi Stadium in Hyderabad. Ramesh credited chief national badminton coach Pullela Gopichand and the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) for the support for Chand.
“All this would not have been possible but for the support of the AFI and the free boarding facility given at Gopi Chand Academy by Gopi Sir (chief national badminton coach P. Gopi Chand) in 2014 when IAAF slapped a ban on her on grounds of hyperandrogenism. That was the most critical phase when she was staring at the dead-end of her career,” the coach explained.
Ramesh also stressed on the importance of having international exposure for Chand as he mentioned, “Well, Gulf nations hiring African athletes may deny Indians some medal chances but I look at the kind of confidence we get if we beat them consistently as we look ahead. The training part has been pretty good. She badly needs exposure to international events and competing with those who clock around 11.00 sec in 100 m.”