‘Chance to win Olympic gold’
Shiv Kapur
Ace Indian golfer Shiv Kapur has said that the inclusion of the sport at the 2016 Olympics was a great opportunity for him to realise the dream of winning a gold at the quadrennial event.
“Golf is becoming an Olympic sport in 2016. It is a big step. It has been my dream to win an Olympic gold as I won the Asian Games gold in 2002. It is a big opportunity,” Kapur was quoted here as saying here on Saturday.
The 31-year-old termed the ongoing impasse between the International Olympic Committee and Indian Olympic Association a big shame and added that he was sad at the way the Indian body was handling the whole issue.
“I feel extremely sad. I have signed the petition which was started by Abhinav Bindra and I have also sent it to 1,000 people. I think sports should not suffer because of politics. It is a big shame,” Kapur said at the launch of the Ballantine team-Am Golf Challenge 4 to be held in Vietnam.
Ever since IOA’s suspension by the world body, Indian athletes have not been able to participate under the national flag at international events.
Kapur, who made his first ever cut in a major at the prestigious British Open in July, said he was proud of his achievement.
“It was a great learning experience. I was lucky I could play my best golf with the world watching. It was a proud moment for me to see my name at the leaderboard and I hope next time I can win the title,” he said.
With the prevailing economic situation forcing organisers to axe India’s only European Tour event, the Avantha Masters, Kapur believes that it will be a more difficult task for country’s golfers to qualify for the Euro Tour.
“It will make it a bit difficult for Indian golfers to qualify for the European Tour but then it is just one tournament and to qualify one needs to be more consistent. I am sure we will tide over this bad time and may be if not European Tour event, we might have a PGA tour event too in India.”
He added that the financial crisis may also raise a question mark over the sustainability of the Golf Premier League scheduled for next year.
“The way the rupee is slipping, I guess, I also have to take a hard look at the 2014 Golf Premier League. There are many people involved and I think it will be unfair to expect that the franchises will keep investing such huge sums of money,” he said.
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