Thanks to Neeraj, because of his gold we are also learning to think big: Murali Sreeshankar

New Delhi [India], August 20 : Asian Athletics Championships Silver Medalist Murali Sreeshankar who is preparing for the World Athletics Championships Budapest 2023, said that because of Neeraj Chopra's gold medal in the Olympics, athletes have learnt to think big and aim high. 
In an exclusive interview with JioCinema, Asian Athletics Championships Silver Medal winner, Murali Sreeshankar revealed his preparedness for the World Athletics Championships Budapest 23 and how his recent performances in international events have boosted his confidence.
"There has been a big paradigm shift in the mindset of the athletes, thanks to Neeraj bhaiya, because of his gold we are also learning to think big and high. Also, one notable fact is that a lot of athletes are getting international exposure recently and in the past 2-3 years, most of the athletes are travelling abroad for high-quality competitions like the Diamond League events, World Athletics and Continental tour events and we are now regularly competing in Europe with the best athletes in the world," Sreeshankar said
"So that has made the process a bit easier for the athletes to put up a good show at major competitions such as the World Championships or the Olympic Games and do their best performance and be against the world beaters," he further added. 
The 24-year-old took us behind the scenes – from sports-related dinner table conversations with his family, being a passionate Kobe Bryant fan and to how his academic science background helps him perform better as an athlete.
When asked about his personal best of 8.41 meters, Sreeshankar said, "I am aware of the fact that me and my friend Jeswin – have made some good jumps this year. It’s good enough to win World Championships or an Olympic Medal but the perspective is that we must perform on that particular day. What we always try to emulate is to try our max and do what we have done in the domestic circuit and try to do what we have done on our best day and at the time of the World Championships Final.
So that’s what we are always trying to do and with the kind of exposure I have got this season and the Diamond League competitions – I have faced with the top athletes in the world. I will be able to put up a good jump in the World Championships Finals and my obvious aim would be to match my personal best and to improve it. So, I am very optimistic about the World Championships." 
"So, that has been quite a determining factor in all our performances because I have been out of India for five months now, I have been in different places in Europe adapting to different conditions and competing with the top athletes in the world and that has given me a lot of confidence and I will be able to control my nerves at the big events such as the Olympics and the World Championships. If you see the World University games, we have got medals and our youth athletes are doing well and its quite evident in the recently held Asian Championships in Thailand and last year’s CWG in Birmingham. So, we are gradually improving our performances - it’s a steady improvement and I am sure in a few years it will be Indian athletes winning medals in global tournaments will be a normal thing." 
Sreeshankar further talked about how he takes inspiration from Neeraj, saying that he motivates and inspires athletes. 
"The inspiration not only comes from the resume of medals he has but also from the type of person he is, he is always motivating and inspiring a lot of athletes. He will reach out to all the athletes after their competition if they perform really well or not well, he is always supporting and encouraging all the athletes and when it comes from such a big personality, such a big character like Neeraj Chopra – it’s a very big motivation for all the athletes to perform well.
He also shares his experience when we are together. So that’s a very good thing for developing athletes like me and the others to get insightful knowledge about how to adjust to conditions, how the food and weather is and to get that sort of insight and information from an athlete like Neeraj Chopra that will really help us a lot in our own sport and in our own ways and he is a very simple and down to earth person and is always ready to share his experience, insights and his knowledge with us. So that’s very nice of him and very good for all of us," the Indian Athlete further added.