Dutee Chand qualifies for Tokyo Olympics, says there is 'no pressure to perform'

Indian sprinter Dutee Chand is all set to feature in the upcoming Tokyo Olympics. The ace sprinter has now revealed that she will focus on the 100m race in the tournament which commences on July 23. Earlier last week, Dutee clinched qualification for the 100m and 200m races via the World Rankings quota. She claimed that there is ‘no pressure' to perform.

Dutee Chand says she is proud to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics

Odissa's Sprint Queen is now ready to shift her focus on the tournament in hand. Having clinched qualifications in two events, Dutee is ideally focussing on one. The proud sprinter says she is ready for the event and is optimistic to win a medal for the country. She also thanked her trainers for the feat.

Speaking to ANI about the qualification, Dutee said, “I’m feeling proud & happy to be qualified for the Tokyo Olympics in both the 100m & 200m races via the World Rankings quota. I’m very thankful to my trainers. I will perform well in Olympics & I aim to qualify for the semi-finals.”

"I have focused more on 100m because I didn't have sufficient time to prepare for 200m. My focus will on 100m this time. There are many restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic but I will focus on training and competitions. There is no pressure on me as I have competed with the same set of players before. And if I get to compete with the world-class players, it will just add to the excitement level," she added.

Dutee Chand in Olympics

Dutee’s qualification for the quadrennial event is huge for India as another sprinter, Hima Das failed to qualify for the event. Dutee, who created a new national record in the 100m race at the Indian Grand Prix IV gives high hopes for the country. Despite setting a new record by clocking 11.17 seconds to finish the race, she failed to qualify for the games by just 0.02 seconds, as per the Olympics qualification parameters. However, the sprint queen managed to clinch qualification based on her world ranking. Dutee is currently ranked world number 44 in 100m and 51 in 200m categories.

IMAGE: PTI/ AP