Being a sportsperson, we can all relate to Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore: Jhulan Goswami

Indian women cricket team pace spearhead Jhulan Goswami is optimistic at the appointment of Olympic medallist shooter Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore as the Sports Minister and said he can take the country to new heights in sports. Rathore is the first sportsperson who has been appointed as the Sports Minister of the country. Rathore has won an Olympic medal in the 2004 Athens Olympic. The 47-year-old Rathore was till now serving as minister of state for information & broadcasting. The Olympic silver medal winner takes over from the pro-active Goel following a major cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“We definitely hope that he will improve the infrastructure and ensure a better upkeep of the existing facilities to take Indian sport to new heights,” she said. “Being a sportsperson, we can all relate to him and I’m so excited,” Goswami told PTI. “He has gone through the same struggle and is very much aware of the difficulties faced by an athlete…what it takes to win a medal at the highest level,” she added.

Goswami back cricket in Olympics

Goswami also said that women’s cricket in Olympics will be a great step forward, as the whole world will look forward to it. “I am not aware of any development. But it would be a wonderful idea to have women’s cricket in Olympics, something the whole world looks forward to,” she said.

Goswami also shared the story of how her coach Mr.Swapan Sadhu convinced her family and inspired her to take up the sport as a career. “When I first told my parents about my passion for the game it was like ‘Hiroshima-Nagasaki atomic bombings’ at home but my coach convinced my parents. “At that time, women’s cricket was not heard of by many. I’m here because of his foresight and untiring dedication for the sport. He felt women should have their own identity,” Jhulan concluded.