Paris [France], August 11 : India's stalwart goalkeeper PR Sreejesh posed with his Olympic bronze medal in front of the iconic Eiffel Tower on Sunday.
Sreejesh bowed out of the international hockey circuit with an Olympic bronze medal in Paris to his name. While the majority of the players returned to India, Sreejesh stayed behind with Amit Rohidas for the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics.
Sreejesh took to X and posted a picture of him with his Olympic bronze medal and captioned it, "Hey man..."
{{{{twitter_post_id####}}}}ഏടാ മോനെ….😎 pic.twitter.com/tKG49RASgF— sreejesh p r (@16Sreejesh) August 11, 2024
India won consecutive bronze hockey medals for the first time in 52 years, since the 1972 Munich Games.
Playing in an electrifying atmosphere on Thursday, the Indian team overcame a 0-1 deficit after the first quarter against Spain. Goals from Harmanpreet Singh (30', 33') were enough to seal the victory. Marc Miralles (18') was the lone goal-scorer for Spain.
Sreejesh, who was playing his last game for India, was overcome with emotion as the rest of the team joined him to celebrate this momentous occasion in Indian hockey history.
Under the guidance of coach Craig Fulton, India created history by securing back-to-back bronze medals at the Olympics.
Sreejesh was nominated as one of the flagbearers by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) along with pistol shooter Manu Bhaker at the Closing Ceremony of the ongoing Paris Olympics.
Speaking toat the India House, Sreejesh talked about his being named the joint flagbearer and said, "It is the cherry on the cake (being chosen as flag-bearer). It is my last tournament, the last Olympics and I am going out with a medal. Now, I have been chosen to be the flag-bearer. One cannot demand anything more than this."
IOA President PT Usha said Sreejesh was both an emotional and popular choice within the IOA leadership, including the Chef de Mission Gagan Narang, and the entire Indian contingent.
"Sreejesh has served Indian hockey in particular and Indian sport in general admirably through more than two decades," Usha was quoted by the IOA.
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