'Win or lose is a part of the game. But to get so close to a medal and lose it, hurts for quite a long time'
Despite the disappointment of a fourth-place finish in the women's 25m pistol event at the Paris Olympics, Manu Bhaker's father, Ramkrishna Bhaker, maintained a positive outlook.
Acknowledging the pain of such a close defeat, he emphasised the importance of perspective, highlighting Manu's previous medal wins at the Games.
Speaking to ANI, Ramkrishna said it would hurt him since she was close to winning her third medal at the Paris Olympics. He pointed out the bright side and said that Manu already has two medals in the ongoing Summer Games.
"Win or lose is a part of the game. But to get so close to a medal and lose it, hurts for quite a long time, but the good thing for Manu is that she has already won two medals...," Ramkrishna said.
Manu came close to becoming the first Indian to win three medals at the Summer Games, however, the 22-year-old missed the chance after finishing in fourth place in the women's 25m pistol shooting event.
Manu's voyage came to an end when she was pitted in a shoot-off against the former world record holder Veronika Major of Hungary as they were tied at 28 points.
Jiin Yang of South Korea secured the top spot to clinch the gold medal. Camille Jedrzejewski of France had to settle for second place. Meanwhile, Hungary's Veronika Major finished in third place.