Tokyo Olympics-bound Bajrang Punia takes first dose of COVID-19 vaccine 

Tokyo Olympics-bound wrestler Bajrang Punia recently revealed that he has taken the first shot of the COVID-19 vaccine. The 27-year-old further told ANI that he would advise other athletes to consult their doctors and coaches before doing the same.

"I have taken the first dose of (the COVID-19) vaccine and will take the next dose after 28 days. I won't tell anyone to take the vaccine or not take it. Athletes must consult their doctors and coaches before getting the first dose," Bajrang Punia told ANI

Punia has been in good form, recently winning the gold medal at the Matteo Pallicone Ranking Series event last week. The Indian wrestler secured his berth at the Tokyo Olympics by winning a bronze medal at the 2019 World Championships.

I felt it was disturbing my preparations: Bajrang Punia on his break from social media

Bajrang Punia - Image Credit @WeAreTeamIndia Twitter handle

Bajrang Punia, the World No. 1 in the 65-kg category also revealed that he has taken a break from social media in order to focus on the preparations for the upcoming Tokyo Olympics.

Punia said that he planned to use the time he spent on social media to work on his weaknesses.

"If I want to win a medal in the Olympics, I have to keep everything aside for the coming months," said Punia. "I can use social media after the Olympics. So, instead of wasting my time, I decided to focus on my preparations. In my free time, I can work on my weaknesses too."

The Indian Railways officer went on to clarify that his self-imposed social media embargo did not stem from any incident. He simply felt it was distracting him from his training.

"I felt that social media was disturbing my preparation. And the Olympics is the biggest event so I thought it would be better if I put all my focus on my preparations," said Punia.