Tokyo Olympics 2020: Prime Minister Narendra Modi promises to join PV Sindhu for ice cream after successful Games

Making a reference to her monk-like preparations for the Rio Olympics five years ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told PV Sindhu that he looked forward to enjoying an ice cream with her when she returned with a medal from the deferred Tokyo Olympics. Ahead of her silver medal-winning run in the capital of Brazil in 2016, Sindhu’s coach Pullela Gopichand famously forbid her from eating ice cream and took away her phone for a few months. Those sacrifices played a part in leading the shuttler to a silver medal at Rio. With just 10 days to go for the Olympics, PM Modi hosted a virtual press conference on Tuesday where he interacted with many of India’s Tokyo Olympics-bound athletes like javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, archers Deepika Kumari and Pravin Jadhav, shooters Saurabh Chaudhary and Elavenil Valarivan, boxers Mary Kom and Ashish Kumar, paddlers Sharath Kamal and Manika Batra, wrestler Vinesh Phogat, tennis star Sania Mirza among others. The event was also attended by new sports minister Anurag Thakur along with MoS Nisith Pramanik and former sports minister Kiren Rijiju, who now is the law minister. While he enquired about the personal journeys of many of the athletes in attendance and spoke to the parents of some athletes, he chose to ask Sindhu whether she was still prohibited from eating ice cream in the lead-up to Tokyo 2020. “I remember that your coach, Gopichand, said in an interview that he had taken away your phone before Rio 2016 and didn’t allow you to eat ice-cream. Abhi bhi aapke ice cream khaane par paabandi lagi hui hai ya kuch chooth mili hai? (Is there still a restriction on you eating ice cream or have you gotten a reprieve?)” a smiling Modi asked Sindhu. When Sindhu replied that she had been controlling her diet and watching what she ate before the Olympics, Modi replied: “I’m certain this time too you will definitely succeed at the Olympics. And when we meet after your success at the Games, even I will join you in eating an ice cream.” Addressing the athletes at the end of the hour-long virtual event, Modi said: “I would liked it even more if we had had the opportunity to host you at my residence in New Delhi and interact with you face to face. But unfortunately, it was not possible due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many athletes representing the nation are already abroad for training. But once you return from the Games, I promise to meet all of you personally. Coronavirus has changed everything, including the year of the Olympic Games (from 2020 to 2021) and the way you train. You will encounter a different atmosphere at Tokyo too.” Calling the athletes a “reflection of new India”, Modi said: “Some of you started your journey from the fields in villages. Others have been part of sports academies since the start. But now all of you represent Team India.” While urging the athletes not to take pressure on themselves to win, he said: “Looking at you and your energy, I can say confidently that soon winning will be a habit for new India. This is just the start.”