Dushyant Chauhan, who won India’s first medal in rowing at the ongoing 18th Asian Games, literally gave it his all to claim the bronze in men's lightweight single sculls on Friday.
Dushyant’s high on adrenaline dash in the final 500 metres took a toll on him and he had to be carried on a stretcher to the medical centre. He was so drained out from his bronze medal effort that he could not stand properly during the medal ceremony. Soon he threw up, prompting the doctors to rush him to the medical centre again.
I pushed as if it was the last race of my life. That was the only thing in the mind. May be I pushed a bit too hard but it was worth it. I had a bad cold and throat in the run up to the event, that also affected me a lot during the race. I was gone.Dushyant Chauhan
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Dushyant later revealed that he had not eaten much in the morning ahead of the race as they all had to maintain weight of 72 kg.
"I just had two breads and an apple. It was very hot also. That is why I was completely dehydrated," added the 25-year-old who lives in Gurgaon.
Dushyant finished third on the podium with a timing of 7.18.76 as India enjoyed a good beginning to the sixth day of the Asiad.
Korea's Hyunsu Park and Hong Kong's Chun Gun Chiu clinched the gold and silver medals respectively
Dushyant, who was declared the best rower in the 2013 National Championships, began rowing in 2012 at an army training camp in Roorkee. He had won a bronze in the last edition of the Games, too, in Incheon.
The Indian rowing contingent had a great outing on the sixth day of the Asiad, winning three medals, including a historic gold in quadruple sculls. Apart from Dushyant’s bronze, Bhagwan Singh and Rohit Kumar also won bronze in men's lightweight double sculls.