CHENNAI: 415 days. That’s how long Jayanta Talukdar has been out of international action. The former World No 2 will return to the Indian team at the Archery World Cup Stage IV in Berlin, beginning on August 8.
The 31-year-old, whose last international appearance was at the 2016 Archery World Cup Stage III in Turkey, made the cut after a gruelling three-day trial at the SAI Eastern Regional Centre in Kolkata. However, he was less than impressed with the timing and place of the trials. “Everybody knows the weather in Kolkata during July. It’s very hot and humid and not ideal conditions for conducting a trial. However, I managed to do well and am confident of doing well in Berlin,” Talukdar told Express.
According to the archer from Guwahati, the exile was self-imposed after the top-seeded men’s trio of Jayanta, Atanu Das and Mangal Singh Champia lost to lowly Malaysia and failed to qualify for Rio 2016. “I felt I let the team down. I was not happy with my performance and missing out on an Olympic spot was not easy to digest. I couldn’t focus during the individual trials and Atanu got through.
I went back to Guwahati and spent some time alone,” he said. The current World No 37 used the spare time to work on fitness. In collaboration with Tata Archery Academy physio Amey Kolekar, Jayanta lost 20 kilos and strengthened his shoulder muscles, something that has been bothering him for a while.
“There were five stages of intense workout. The first four stages were based purely on weight loss. The last stage was maintaining the weight. The programme was from last October to March,” the Arjuna awardee revealed.
During this period, Talukdar did not focus too much on shooting. “I did take part in the trials but it was just to check where my levels were compared to the other archers.”
After being satisfied with his fitness levels, he decided to start full-fledged training, for which he went to the new SAI Centre in Shillong. He practised alone there for 40 days after which he attended the Kolkata trials and made the cut.
Now, Jayanta has his sights firmly on this year’s World Championships in Mexico from October 15. “Our last medal was in 2005. My Berlin performance will prove where I stand. I plan to increase my confidence and give it my all in Mexico City,” he signed off.
ayantan@newindianexpress.com