Being a member of the Indian Olympic contingent along with a legend like Milkha Singh would be a proud moment for any athlete.
My Olympic journey started when I went to Delhi for trials and qualified for the 1964 Tokyo Games in the marathon. I still cherish the moment when the postman gave me the letter from Delhi saying that I qualified for the Games. I had to go to Delhi by train from Pune and after we all gathered, we were taken to the airport and took a flight to Calcutta and from there, we flew to Tokyo. That was the first time I ever flew in an aircraft. It was a new world altogether; people were very helpful and the Olympic Village was something that I won’t forget.
Coming from a lower-middle-class family in Pune’s Chinchwad, I had to pinch myself sometimes to believe that all I was seeing was real. The dining hall, along with the venue, was very special. And it was here Milkha would tell us to make the most of the opportunity. He asked us to meet world’s renowned athletes who were present there. My event being the last, I used to go for practice every morning and it was here that I got to meet the defending champion Abebe Bikila from Ethiopia. He was the favourite, but there were several others who were tipped to win. In the end, Abebe emerged champion.
For me, running in the stadium, which was full, was a great moment. There were 100 runners and I finished 33rd. I still have the chest number 33030, which Abebe envied. He came to me and said, “You have a number which is very lucky, make the most of it.”
— Marathoner Balkrishna Akotkar is retired and stays in Pimpri. He spoke to Joe Williams
My Olympic journey started when I went to Delhi for trials and qualified for the 1964 Tokyo Games in the marathon. I still cherish the moment when the postman gave me the letter from Delhi saying that I qualified for the Games. I had to go to Delhi by train from Pune and after we all gathered, we were taken to the airport and took a flight to Calcutta and from there, we flew to Tokyo. That was the first time I ever flew in an aircraft. It was a new world altogether; people were very helpful and the Olympic Village was something that I won’t forget.
Coming from a lower-middle-class family in Pune’s Chinchwad, I had to pinch myself sometimes to believe that all I was seeing was real. The dining hall, along with the venue, was very special. And it was here Milkha would tell us to make the most of the opportunity. He asked us to meet world’s renowned athletes who were present there. My event being the last, I used to go for practice every morning and it was here that I got to meet the defending champion Abebe Bikila from Ethiopia. He was the favourite, but there were several others who were tipped to win. In the end, Abebe emerged champion.
For me, running in the stadium, which was full, was a great moment. There were 100 runners and I finished 33rd. I still have the chest number 33030, which Abebe envied. He came to me and said, “You have a number which is very lucky, make the most of it.”
— Marathoner Balkrishna Akotkar is retired and stays in Pimpri. He spoke to Joe Williams
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