The defender did not make it to the 16-member squad for the Olympics at first. But when the International Olympic Committee (IOC) allowed teams to have two more players, owing to the coronavirus scare, Varun Kumar’s name was included as an alternate athlete.
Varun Kumar was part of the 2016 Indian junior hockey team when they won the World Cup. He also played an integral part in India’s 3-1 win over Argentina in the group stages of the Tokyo Olympics. Scoring India’s first goal, Varun Kumar set the tempo as India went on to decimate the then reigning Olympic champions.
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Looking back, Varun Kumar said he felt very fortunate to be a part of the history making Indian men’s hockey team. ‘However, he also expressed his disappointment at the fact that he didn’t feature in the 16-member squad initially.
Varun Kumar’s chat with Manpreet Singh changed his mindset
A chat with Indian men’s hockey team skipper Manpreet Singh helped Varun Kumar a lot. Varun Kumar and Manpreet Singh hail from the same place i.e., Mithapur in Punjab. They even plied their trade in the same hockey academy in their formative years.
Manpreet Singh advised Varun Kumar not to be hard on himself and that helped him with his overall thought process. Varun Kumar explained:
Varun Kumar did follow his captain’s advice, and he eventually became one of the most important players for India at the Tokyo Olympics. He stepped up when it mattered and even scored India’s first goal against Argentina in the group stages.
The Indian men’s hockey team will start their national camp at the Sports Authority of India (SAI) campus in Bengaluru for the upcoming season. The Indian women’s hockey team had commenced their camp a few days before.
Also read: Indian hockey teams likely to miss Commonwealth Games to prepare for Asian Games
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