By Vivek Prabhakar Singh

New Delhi [India], October 13 (ANI): India's double Olympic medalist Manu Bhaker expressed happiness at being felicitated by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) for her heroics in the Paris Olympics and said that with several important multi-nation events lined up, she is taking things 'one at a time'.

IOA on Monday, held a special felicitation ceremony at the Taj Man Singh Hotel in New Delhi to honour India's medallists from the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. Manu secured two bronze medals at the marquee event, which launched her into stardom.

Speaking to ANI, Manu said that after two weeks of training, the event was a 'refreshing' one for her and a 'moment of inspiration' to meet several athletes, IOA president PT Usha and Union Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya after so long.

'Getting this honour means a lot for me. I also got to meet so many people, the athletes, after such a long time. It was a moment of inspiration for me to gather together and share our thoughts with each other. Meeting PT Usha and Mansukh sir after such a long time was great. There were long training sessions since past two weeks so it was a very refreshing moment for me,' she said.

Manu said that she has events like the World Championships scheduled later this year, Asian Games in Japan next year and the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics in her mind, but would like to take things 'one at a time'.

'Definitely we have all the events in our mind and we are preparing for them as much as we can. The entire shooting team is really working hard. I would say Olympic Gold Quest (OGQ) has been a big supporter of me in this journey. I have Asian Games, Olympics and World C'ships in my mind. But I would like to take things one at a time. Right now, I am focusing on my performances next month, and I am training for that. I am really positive, let us see how it goes,' she added.

At the ceremony, the IOA presented cash awards to all medallists and their coaches in recognition of their contribution to India's success. Neeraj Chopra received Rs 75 lakh, Manu Bhaker Rs 50 lakh and Rs 37.5 lakh, Sarabjot Singh Rs 37.5 lakh, Swapnil Kusale Rs 50 lakh, Aman Sehrawat Rs 50 lakh, and the Indian men's hockey team Rs 10 lakh (main squad) and Rs 5 lakh (reserve players).

India finished its Paris 2024 campaign with six medals, one silver and five bronze. Neeraj Chopra added to his Tokyo glory with a silver in men's javelin throw, reaffirming his dominance on the world stage. Shooter Manu Bhaker claimed two bronze medals, one in the women's 10 m air pistol event and another in the mixed team category with Sarabjot Singh.

Swapnil Kusale made history with a bronze in the men's 50 m rifle 3 positions event, while young wrestler Aman Sehrawat secured bronze in men's freestyle 57 kg, becoming one of India's youngest Olympic medallists. The Indian men's hockey team also returned to the podium, winning bronze after a strong campaign that ended with a 2-1 victory over Spain in the third-place match. (ANI)