Rainy conditions affected my throws at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, recalls Kamalpreet Kaur

Earlier this year, Indian discus thrower Kamalpreet Kaur became the woman to breach the 66m mark, when she registered a throw of 66.59m at the Indian Grand Prix IV, in June. She was well on course for qualification to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the athlete did not disappoint.

Kamalpreet raised the expectations of the entire nation when she qualified for the final of women’s discus throw event at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. However, she missed out on a podium, having finished at the sixth spot with a best throw of 63.70m.

Recalling her outing at the grand stage, Kamalpreet Kaur explained how the persistent rain posed a huge threat to her performance. It was apparently not the first time she faced such an issue. Even at the 2018 Asian Games, she missed out on qualification to the final by metre, owing to rainy conditions inside the stadium.

"Secondly, I get scared to perform in rain. I usually can't perform well in the rain. Earlier for the Asian Games (2018), I missed out on qualification by one metre, because it was raining during the National event. Later, in the next event, I threw around 61m which was equivalent to the Asian Games silver medal. I still have that fear which makes me think that, 'what if I slip or get injured in those conditions'. It is still in my mind and I will try to overcome it,” said Kamalpreet Kaur, to Olympics.com.

In fact, Kamalpreet Kaur had decided to practice on rainy surfaces ahead of the Olympics, but she eventually decided not to, as she didn’t want to pick up an injury back then. However, with the 2024 Paris Olympics far away, she wants to work on the method.

"I have planned to practice in the rain or otherwise make the circle wet and train on it. I had thought of doing it before Tokyo 2020 but didn't risk injury then. But now that I have time for the next Olympics and upcoming events, I will work on this method," added Kamalpreet.