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Indian luger Shiva Keshavan, who is appearing in his sixth and final Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, finished in 36th in the first run out of 40 competitors, before registering a 31st-placed finish in Run 2, on Saturday.
But that did not deter the exuberance of Keshavan or the Indian fans in the stands as they celebrated as if the 36-year-old had won gold medal.
Keshavan finished with a timing of 50.578 seconds in the Men’s Singles Run 1 and 48.710 seconds in Run 2. He now stands 34th in the overall ranking.
The 36-year-old had recently won his fourth Asian Cup gold medal in Germany in December and though a not a huge prospect to win a medal at Pyeongchang, has been looking out to bow out on a high after representing India in the Winter Olympics for over two decades.
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All these emotions seemed to boil over, once Shiva put in a good timing in Run 2, where he was the 40th and last luger to take to the track. After the run, he headed over the a number of Indian fans, who were boisterously cheering him from the stands.
Keshavan himself seemed to have been overwhelmed by the reception he got from the fans. He took to Twitter to express what he was feeling at that moment.
It seems fitting for India to celebrate his achievements and commitment to fight against all odds to fly the Indian flag at the Winter Olympics. Despite being offered full training facilities by the Italian luge team in 2002, under the condition of racing under the Italian flag, Keshavan declined the offer.
He wanted to represent India despite the fact that the sponsors and facilities provided by government or private sponsors were more or less non-existent.
