The podium has space only for those athletes who perform in front of the world. But there is always a guiding hand and wise advice that shows the right path to the medal. The seven medals India won in Tokyo is also a lot for the coaches who worked behind the scenes to make their wards successful on the biggest stage.
Uwe Hohn (Head Coach) and Dr. Klaus Bartonitz (Biomechanical Specialist)
Country: Germany
Athlete: Neeraj Chopra
events: javelin throw
Medal: Sleep
The body of a javelin thrower is similar to that of a bow and a spear arrow. This is Dr. Bartonitz’s philosophy and it worked like a charm for Chopra. Bartonitz is very aware of the intricacies of the phenomenon and is credited with making Chopra stronger, yet more elastic in his movements. He was part of the core team that developed the javelin-specific work-out machine German throwers swear by.
UWE HOHN, the only man to throw a javelin over 100m, coached Chopra when she won Commonwealth and Asian Games gold medals in 2018. He attended Bartonitz for his expertise in early 2019. Both Germans had previously worked with the Chinese national team. .
Vijay Sharma (Chief National Coach)
Country: India
Athlete: Mirabai Chanu
Discipline: Lifting 49kg
Medal: Silver
Mirabai came under the guidance of Chanu Sharma, a former national champion, in 2014, the same year she took charge of the men’s team for the Commonwealth Games. Sharma’s career as a lifter came to a halt due to a wrist injury. He has been persistent during the ups and downs that Chanu faced. After failing to give him a legal lift in the clean and jerk at the 2016 Rio Olympics, Sharma accompanied his mother, who pulled him out of thoughts about retirement. Sharma joined the national camp in 2012 after UP, the state he coached, became a national champion.
Kamal Malikov
Country: Russia
Athlete: Ravi Dahiya
events: 57 kg freestyle wrestling
Medal: Silver
Brought in to prepare Sushil Kumar for Tokyo Olympics qualification, Malikov was to be a fitness trainer, a sparring partner and observer of India’s two-time medalist. But once that was not possible, Malikov was appointed under the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) from April 2021 to help Dahiya. For the Indian wrestler, Malikov was able to purchase major sparring partners in Vladikavkaz (Russia). The 23-year-old’s loss in the gold medal match at the Poland Open prompted the 34-year-old’s coach and student to work harder to improve reaction time and counter speed. Dahiya is a product of wrestling coach Satpal Singh and established at Chhatrasal Stadium, Delhi.
shako bentinidis
Country: Georgia
Athlete: Bajrang Punia
events: 65 kg freestyle wrestling
Medal: Brass
Bajrang’s rise to become one of the top wrestlers in the 65kg category came when Bentinidis took over the reins of the 26-year-old. An animated coach, Bentinidis has facilitated sparring partners for Bajrang from the United States and Russia. Thus, the wrestler from Haryana traveled around the world in search of wrestlers who could attack him at high speed. The goal – to improve the defense of his leg, an aspect that remains a weakness, and his reaction time. Though still not perfect, Bentinidis’ influence has improved Bajrang’s arsenal and won an Olympic bronze medal to boot.
Rafael Bergamasco (High Performance Director)
Country: Italy
Athlete: lovlina borgohain
events: women’s welterweight boxing
Medal: Brass
The son of an Olympian, Bergamasco was a five-time national champion and competed in the Beijing, London and Rio Olympics as a coach. After guiding the Italian women’s team from 2001 to 2007, she took over their senior and junior men’s side and contributed to six Olympic medals. He was let go after a barren race in Rio, and found his way to India in 2017, securing the country’s best medal ever at the Youth Boxing Championships (five gold, two bronze) in November. A month later, she was promoted to director of high performance for senior women.
park tae-sango
Country: South Korea
Athlete: PV Sindhu
events: women’s singles badminton
Medal: Brass
Sindhu’s game was based on strength and impressive arm speed, and she often dominated opponents. But he needed more variety and dimensions to win consistently against the best in the world. Enter Park, the Korean coach who swooped in on players shaped like Sung Ji-hyun, whose on-court movement had the smoothness of a goose in still water. Park assured Sindhu not only in her progress but importantly, worked long hours on her defense – always a target due to her ranged frame. He will also instill confidence in Sindhu’s game in the nets. Where she used to swat on the shuttle first and lift the fight plentifully to take the fight off the forecourt, in Tokyo, Sindhu skillfully engaged with Akane Yamaguchi and didn’t shy away from the dribble. The smash-tap forced the opponents to dig deeper, and it mostly worked in favor of the Indians. The park was also animated – Indus something that gets a lot of energy.
graham reed
Country: Australia
Team: men’s hockey
Medal: Brass
The stint with the Indian team was a shot at redemption for Reid, who were on top with Australia after they crashed out of the Rio Olympics with a 4-0 loss against the Netherlands in the quarter-finals. They have changed the psyche of the team, making them less likely to make costly errors at inappropriate moments. After losing to Belgium in the semi-finals, it was Reid’s job to pick a squad for the bronze-medal playoff against Germany, and India delivered their best performance in a long time. Earlier in the tournament, after a 7–1 loss against Australia, Reid ensured that the team did not panic and fought on level terms with all teams. He has strengthened the team and will record history that he was in charge when India climbed the Olympic podium in hockey after a gap of 41 years.
.