Discus-thrower Krishna Poonia made a name for herself by winning a gold in the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. She followed it up with a bronze at the Asian Games in Guangzhou later that year. The entire country went into frenzy when she became the first Indian woman to win a CWC gold. To boot, she also became the second Indian athlete to win gold in track and field after legendary sprinter Milkha Singh who won a gold in the 1958 Commonwealth Games.
Poonia's bronze at the Asiad, a much tougher competition than the Commonwealth Games, enhanced her reputation as one of the best in Asia and that's what makes her one of the favourites for a medal at London 2012.
The 29-year-old's performance has gone from strength to strength since her Commonwealth Games heroics. Her gold-medal winning throw travelled 61.51 metres. Her bronze-winning throw at Guangzhou was even better at 61.94 metres and very recently in an event in Hawai, she recorded a throw of 64.76. That tells you how much she has improved since the Commonwealth Games and why she is a medal prospect.
There is also a big motivation for her going into the event. Her performance in the last Olympics at Beijing was disastrous. She couldn't even make it to the final, finishing 10th among the qualifiers with a throw of 58.23. In four years' time, she has gone up to 64.76 and that's a profound improvement. She also won a bronze in Doha 2006 with a throw of 61.53 but because of apathy to athletics back then it got very little press.
It won't again be easy for her in London as some of the very best will line up for the medals, but Poonia has a knack of pulling things off against odds. Expect her to bring out that trait once again.
The Indian government bestowed on her the Ajruna Award and Padma Shri in 2010 and 2011 respectively. Her journey from a humble upbringing in Haryana to the top echelons of Indian athletics is staggering and awe-spring. Hopefully, Poonia's legacy only gets richer at the marquee event in London.
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