Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Bulls eye from Atanu Das! It came down to a single arrow shootdown. Oh Jin Hyek, South Korean former gold medalist and absolute favourite, fired a 9. Atanu Das needed 10. Deepika Kumari had quietened down after shouting words of encouragement from the stands. Das steadied and gazed. Still head. Stiller body. Boooom. A perfect 10…!
It was close right through the match. The stodgy Korean has a slightly unique way – He bends his left shoulder a bit outwards as he feels it suits his body. “What matters how you control the shoulders,” he once said. What also matters is how you control the mind. The Indian was better on the day.
It seemed he had won in the regular play itself. In the decider, in the last shot, Das need 10 to win. He fired and the arrow seemingly was on target but it just shaded away to 9. It brushed the previous arrow which was wedged in 10. The commentators speculated whether that brushing made the difference between 10 and 9. It might well have. The Korean let out a sigh of relief in the background. Das’s face creased into a gentle boyish smile.
The final face-off- the single arrow shoot off began. No Achilles heel, this time. Game over.
