On Monday, fate 'sidestepped' Virdhawal Khade, resigning him to fourth place for being slow by 0.03 seconds in the 50m freestyle event at the Asian Games here
On Monday, fate 'sidestepped' Virdhawal Khade, resigning him to fourth place for being slow by 0.03 seconds in the 50m freestyle event at the Asian Games here. But yesterday, the ace swimmer 'sidestepped' himself onto the podium after clinching bronze in the 50m butterfly event.
"Monday's miss was painful because it is one of my favourite events. Even this bronze does not make up for that loss," the 19-year-old said at the Aoti Sports Complex here yesterday.
ADVERTISEMENT
The sidestep manoeuvre is more of a superstitious thing, he later told MiD DAY. "I normally do it because it feels good. I like to take a look at my competitors before I hit the water. It's lucky for me," he said after clocking 24.31 seconds, also his personal best in the event without the banned body suit, earning him the bronze medal behind gold winner Jiawei Zhou (23.66 secs) of China and silver medallist Masayuki Kishida of Japan (24.13 secs).
The Kolhapur lad also made his way into history books, by winning a medal for India in the sport after nearly a quarter of a century. Khazan Singh had won India a silver in the pool at the 1986 Seoul Asiad. The only Indian swimmer to win a gold medal is Sachin Nag in the 100m freestyle at the inaugural Asian Games in Delhi in 1951.
"Exciting news! Mid-day is now on WhatsApp Channels 
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
