KOCHI: "What's the point of earning this recognition if it fails to inspire future generations," PR Sreejesh responds when asked about the significance of being the first male sportsperson from Kerala to win the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award.
For a state that is renowned for its love for football and its greatest exponents being track and field athletes like PT Usha, Anju Bobby George, TC Yohannan etc, hockey star Sreejesh has been a trailblazer.
Back in August, Sreejesh played a pivotal role to guide India to an Olympic medal after a long gap of 41 years. Besides his heroics throughout the tournament, the 33-year-old had made a point-blank save in the dying minutes against Germany as India held on to win 5-4.
On Tuesday, it was announced that Sreejesh will be a recipient of the award alongside twelve others including the likes of Neeraj Chopra, Sunil Chhetri and Lovlina Borgohain.
"Obviously it feels great to win this award and to be first from the state (male) to earn this recognition. But what's more important is for the future generations to look at this and think that we can also achieve what Sreejesh achieved. That's the point of all these awards the way I see it. I hope I am setting a good example for future generations," said Sreejesh.
He will receive the award alongside the others on November 13 at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
When asked if there should be a sporting culture in the state which supports and encourages athletes, the 33-year-old opined that it was all about trying to make the best of the circumstances.
"There is always going to be some challenge or the other in the life of a sportsperson. It's a matter of trying to overcome these challenges and that's where having role models help. All the athletes who have won the award are an inspiration in their own right. Even if one person gets some inspiration or motivation seeing us, then that would be one of the biggest takeaways of being conferred with such a recognition," he said.