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Taking a day off from their hectic preparations for Tokyo Olympics 2020, PV Sindhu and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy visited Vijaywada for a felicitation function on Wednesday.
PV Sindhu and Satwiksairaj were felicitated by Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy.
Both PV Sindhu and Satwiksairaj were given a cheque of Rs 5 lakh each. World No. 7 Sindhu is the only women’s singles player to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics. It will be her second Olympics in a row.
World No. 10 men’s doubles pair Satwiksairaj and Chirag Shetty will be the lone doubles duo for India at the Olympics. This is the first time Satwiksairaj and Chirag Shetty (Maharashtra) are competing in the Olympics. The pair of Satwiksairaj and Chirag Shetty helped India win gold at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games in Australia.
Sindhu and Satwiksairaj promised to do their best at the Tokyo Olympics
After the felicitation, PV Sindhu and Satwiksairaj thanked the AP CM and promised to do their best at the Tokyo Olympics.
“It is a great gesture by the Andhra Pradesh CM Jagan Mohan Reddy Sir to honor us. It will serve as a great motivation for both of us. I will give my best to win the gold medal in Tokyo,” Sindhu said while replying to the felicitation.
Along with Rio Olympics silver medalist Sindhu and Satwiksairaj, Indian hockey player Rajini Etimarpu was also honored by the AP chief minister. The 31-year-old Rajani Etimarpu is an Indian field hockey player and is a member of the Indian women’s national hockey team. She hails from Andhra Pradesh and plays as a goalkeeper.
However, Rajini, who had represented the national side at the last Asian Games, is not part of the Indian squad for the Tokyo Olympics.
Andhra Pradesh sports minister Avanthi Srinivas and other officials as part of the Cheer4India campaign to support and motivate the Tokyo-bound athletes were present on the occasion.
Sindhu’s father PV Ramana accompanied his daughter Vijayawada. Andhra CM Jagan Mohan Reddy also handed over the GO copy of allocating two acres of land to Sindhu in Visakhapatnam district to set up a badminton academy.
PV Ramana had already said that the proposed state-of-the-art badminton academy's work will begin after the Tokyo Olympics.
It is expected that after the formal go-ahead from the Andhra CM, the necessary formalities to start the construction of the academy will gain momentum.
