She shared her thoughts and reflected on some great moments in an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda.

India will field seven wrestlers for the Tokyo Olympics. Barring Vinesh Phogat, who was Sakshi Malik’s teammate at the Rio Games, the other six will be competing in the quadrennial event for the first time.

Sakshi says it is a big opportunity for them to represent the country and they should enjoy the moment. And rightly so. It was the mantra she followed in Brazil on August 17, 2016, to create history. She became the first Indian female wrestler to win an Olympic medal for India.

Sakshi Malik’s journey started with a dream to touch the sky

For many wrestlers, the sport was a way to secure their future. But for Sakshi Malik, taking up wrestling meant she could sit on an airplane. That is where her journey to the Olympics began. However, once she got the feel of the mat, the sky became the limit.

Sakshi Malik began her international journey with a silver medal at the Junior Asian Championship in 2009, followed by a bronze in the Cadet Asian meet the same year. Her first medal at senior level came in at the Commonwealth championship in 2013. She won a bronze medal.

However, she was never a serious contender for an Olympic medal. India had fielded three wrestlers for the Rio Games, including Sakshi Malik (58 kg). The other two were Vinesh Phogat (48 kg) and Babita Kumari (53 kg).

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Sakshi says everyone, including herself, thought Vinesh Phogat would certainly grab a medal. But a freak injury in the quarterfinal ruled Phogat out of the tournament. The injury was a major motivation factor for Sakshi, who registered one of the Olympic’s biggest comebacks to win a medal.

Sakshi Malik’s D-Day at Rio Olympics

For the Haryana wrestler, it was a night of comebacks. In the qualifications against Sweden’s Johanna Mattsson, she trailed 0-4 within the first three minutes. From there, Sakshi Malik registered a tremendous comeback to register a 5-4 win.

In the pre-quarterfinal against Moldova’s Mariana Cherdivara, the Indian grappler once again found herself trailing. But unperturbed by a 0-3 chase, she put on an inspiring show to progress to the quarterfinals.

She could not continue the form and was knocked out by Russia’s Valeria Koblova. But with the latter reaching the final, Sakshi Malik was given the repechage against Mongolia’s Purevdorjin Orkhon. She overcame the challenge and won the bronze medal bout against Aisuluu Tynybekova (the current world champion).

Once again, it was the same story for Sakshi Malik in the repechage. She trailed 0-5 but made a historic comeback to win India its first Olympic medal in women’s wrestling.

Sakshi Malik now a role model for Tokyo Olympic-bound athletes

Sakshi Malik, despite missing out on Tokyo, will be a role model to many athletes, especially Anshu Malik (57 kg) and Sonam Malik (62 kg). The teenage sensations will be competing in their maiden Summer Games. Notably, Sakshi lost her spot in the Indian team to Sonam, who beat her senior counterpart four times in the past year.

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Sakshi said the duo should not be worried about the outcome. Instead, they should just enjoy the experience.

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With just one month to go until the Tokyo Olympics, Sakshi Malik has asked the Indian athletes to focus on their training and stay positive.

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