Winning an Olympic medal is my ultimate aim, reveals Pooja Dhanda

Pooja Dhanda came to prominence after she grabbed silver in the women's 57 kg freestyle wrestling after losing to Nigeria's Odunayo Adekuoroye 7-5 in the final of last year's Gold Coast CWG at the Carrara Sports Arena. She has been an ever-present figure in the Indian wrestling circle and is touted to pull off a surprise and bag a medal at next year's Tokyo Olympic Games.

"Five minutes later, I got a congratulatory message from Bajrang (Punia) about my Arjuna Award recommendation. He had sent me the list of the awardees. I immediately called my parents and asked for their blessings. It is a big achievement for me. Now, there will be more responsibilities on my shoulders and the country will expect a lot more from me when I hit the mat. I promise I won't disappoint them. Winning an Olympic medal is my ultimate aim," Pooja said in an interview with TOI.

"It feels really great when my coaches call me Arjuna awardee Pooja. I never imagined I would experience something like this in my life. I am thankful to God, my parents and my coaches who have done everything to make this possible. I have learnt a lot from my coaches Kripa Shankar sir and Kuldeep sir. Kripa sir taught me movement, motion and the technique of wrestling. The best thing I have learnt from him is how to read the body language of an opponent. 

"I would also like to give credit to WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. He has played a big role in my comeback. He showed confidence in me and gave me the chance to compete in the Pro Wrestling League season 2," Pooja added.