Our goal is to win the Asian Games gold and qualify directly for the Paris Olympics: Indian women's hockey team defender Udita

The 2021 Tokyo Olympics was a game changer for Indian sporting history. The world witnessed a revival of Indian hockey, with the men clinching a bronze while the women's team finished fourth.

After such a confidence-boosting performance, the women's team is excitedly looking forward to the Paris Olympics. With just three years left until the big event, the team is fully focused on qualifying for the Games. India will get their first opportunity at next year's Asian Games and are leaving no stone unturned in their preparations.

"We have a crucial year ahead of us, with the all-important Asian Games. Our goal will be to win the gold medal there, and qualify directly for the Paris Olympics," defender Udita was quoted as saying to Hockey India.

Udita, who was an integral part of the team, has asserted that staying in the present helped India bounce back from a series of losses and eventually script history in Tokyo. She also explained how the experience helped them learn to deal with high-pressure situations.

"As youngsters, we've learned so much from this historic campaign. We've got to learn how to deal with massive pressure at the biggest of stages, and we also learned how staying in the present moment can help you do wonders," said Udita.

"Staying in the present moment helped us create history at Tokyo Olympics 2020." Indian Women's Hockey Defender Udita📸 Credit: @TheHockeyIndia#IndianHockeyTeam #Tokyo2020 #TokyoOlympics #tokyoolympics2020 pic.twitter.com/UuqNFC2I2w

— nnis (@nnis_sports) September 15, 2021

Udita and the team are looking forward to a new season

Udita is currently part of the 25-member senior women’s core probable group for the national coaching camp that will continue until October 20 at the Sports Authority of India (SAI), Bengaluru. The team looks in good shape and is super excited to be back at the camp.

"We are super excited to be back at the camp, and can't wait to start our new season. Our first target will be to work on fitness because we haven't done anything since coming back from Tokyo. We will also analyse our Olympics performance in detail and work on accordingly," said Udita.

Indian Women’s Hockey Team Defender, Udita believes staying in the present helped them create history at the #TokyoOlympics. 👏🏑Read: https://t.co/jvwdJI9yHt#IndiaKaGame pic.twitter.com/WtMFI47aab

— Hockey India (@TheHockeyIndia) September 15, 2021