"Whenever I wear this jersey, I get inspired to do something special" - Indian hockey team striker Lalit Upadhyay

With an Olympic bronze in 2020 and an Asian Games gold medal to his name, Lalit Upadhyay takes immense pride in donning the Indian jersey. He is confident that the Indian team will upgrade the color of the medal in Paris.

“Whenever I wear this jersey, I get inspired to do something special. We know the expectations are high because we won an Olympic medal after a long time in Tokyo. We are confident that the colour of the medal will be changed,” Upadhyay told PTI Bhasha (via Sportstar).

The Indian forward, who has scored 45 goals in 168 international games, is confident of the team’s preparations.

“We have worked hard on fitness in the last four years, which is visible on the field. In fitness, we are at par with the top teams in the world,” said Upadhyay. “I just hope this legacy of hockey remains intact and the flag of Indian hockey keeps flying high.”

---

"I became mentally stronger" - Lalit Upadhyay on 2008 scandal

Indian men’s hockey team striker Lalit Upadhyay has proved his mantle as a top-tier athlete by overcoming adversity and challenges that he feels could easily have derailed his journey. In 2008, Upadhyay, a then 17-year-old, was wrongly embroiled in a scandal involving a sting operation, in which his name was misused as bait by a TV reporter.

Although the young athlete had done nothing wrong, he had to face the humiliation and threat of a derailed career. However, it was his mental toughness that helped the striker come out of it all unscathed and stronger than ever. The now 30-year-old, who will be competing at the upcoming Paris Olympics, sees the incident as a ‘blessing in disguise.’

“If this happens to any boy who is immature and has come into the team with big dreams, he would be shattered. But in a way, it was a blessing in disguise for me. When I faced all this in the beginning, I became mentally stronger. Although I have forgotten that incident, when I remember it, I feel stronger,” Lalit Upadhyay told PTI Bhasha.