Gowda runs into old nemeses Hadadi, settles for silver again
2 Oct 2014 5:07 AM IST
Gowda, who was relegated to silver at the Guangzhou Asian Games, by Hadadi was once again pushed to the second spot, as he has been on numerous other occasions.
Olympic silver medallist Hadadi, who has won the Asian Championships four times, also completed a hat-trick of Asian Games gold medals in discus. His wins in Asian Championships have often come at the expense of Gowda, as in 2005 (where Gowda was second), 2007 (where was Gowda was fourth), 2009 (Gowda did not take part) and 2011 (where Gowda was again second).
‘I have competed enough against Ehsan and I know what I am up against. I knew very much that I needed to get past 65 metres to have a chance. I think I did that on my fifth throw, but it turned out to be a foul by a very thin margin as my foot just went over,’ said Gowda, the nearly six-foot-eight inch son of former coach, Shive Gowda, who was present in the stands to see his won a second medal this year.
Gowda, who shifted his base to United States almost a decade ago, threw his best (62.58m) on the second throw fouled his last three attempts while trying to catch up Hadadi, whose best of 65.11m also came on the second throw. Hadadi underlined his consistency with throws of 64.89m, 63.77m and 64.47m in his last three attempts, all of which were better than the best by Gowda.
‘Normally I don’t foul as much, but except in the fifth throw, where I was patient and gave myself time to complete my turn, I was impatient on my other throws,’ said Gowda, who also revealed that he had an injury scare two weeks ago.
‘I was unable to train in the run-up, though I had a good workout on Monday. I had to re-schedule my arrival into Incheon from US after the injury,’ he added.
The 29-year-old Hadadi, who has matured into a world-class thrower with medals at both Olympics and World Championships, was still way below his Asian record at 69.32m and the Games record of 67.99m, he set in Guangzhou four years ago. Hadadi, a very consistent thrower, also won a silver medal at the Olympic Games in 2012 and bronze at Daegu World Championships.
Olympic silver medallist Hadadi, who has won the Asian Championships four times, also completed a hat-trick of Asian Games gold medals in discus. His wins in Asian Championships have often come at the expense of Gowda, as in 2005 (where Gowda was second), 2007 (where was Gowda was fourth), 2009 (Gowda did not take part) and 2011 (where Gowda was again second).
‘I have competed enough against Ehsan and I know what I am up against. I knew very much that I needed to get past 65 metres to have a chance. I think I did that on my fifth throw, but it turned out to be a foul by a very thin margin as my foot just went over,’ said Gowda, the nearly six-foot-eight inch son of former coach, Shive Gowda, who was present in the stands to see his won a second medal this year.
Gowda, who shifted his base to United States almost a decade ago, threw his best (62.58m) on the second throw fouled his last three attempts while trying to catch up Hadadi, whose best of 65.11m also came on the second throw. Hadadi underlined his consistency with throws of 64.89m, 63.77m and 64.47m in his last three attempts, all of which were better than the best by Gowda.
‘Normally I don’t foul as much, but except in the fifth throw, where I was patient and gave myself time to complete my turn, I was impatient on my other throws,’ said Gowda, who also revealed that he had an injury scare two weeks ago.
‘I was unable to train in the run-up, though I had a good workout on Monday. I had to re-schedule my arrival into Incheon from US after the injury,’ he added.
The 29-year-old Hadadi, who has matured into a world-class thrower with medals at both Olympics and World Championships, was still way below his Asian record at 69.32m and the Games record of 67.99m, he set in Guangzhou four years ago. Hadadi, a very consistent thrower, also won a silver medal at the Olympic Games in 2012 and bronze at Daegu World Championships.
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