South Korea the team to beat at Olympics: Rahul Banerjee

Kolkata - Olympic medal hopeful archer Rahul Banerjee on Saturday pointed to South Korea as the toughest opponent and said the London weather will play a significant role at the event to be held at Lord’s.

“We all know about the London weather. The wind and the wet weather will definitely have a significant bearing on the performance of the archers. We need to keep the weather factor in mind and adapt to the situation quickly,” said Banerjee on the eve of the team’s departure for the London Games.

The men’s team comprising Banerjee, Jayanta Talukdar and Tarundeep Rai and the women’s team of Deepika Kumari, Laishram Bombayla Devi and Chekrovolu Swuro accompanied by coach Limba Ram will leave for London Sunday.

Talking about the South Koreans, Banerjee said: “The Koreans are one of the best in business and the team to watch out for. However, we both individually and as a team have been doing well and hope to win at least two medals.”

With the Lord’s Cricket Ground being the venue for the archery event of the Olympics, Banerjee, a first time Olympian, hoped to peform like former India cricket captain Sourav Ganguly who made a century on his debut at the hallowed stadium.

“Sourav scored a century on his debut at Lord’s and like him I hope that we will do India proud at the Games,” added Banerjee.

Both Talukdar and Rai expressed satisfaction over their preparation.

Coach Limba Ram also exuded confidence and said the games would be a test of nerves and temperament and the ones who would keep their cool will do well.

“It is all about handling pressure. The players must keep their cool and should focus only on their game,” said Limba Ram.