I didn't care if it hurt: Turkish archer Mete Gazoz on the pain before his Tokyo Olympics gold

Kolkata, Oct 13 (PTI) Shooting close to 400 arrows in 10 hours a day for five years, enduring bleeding fingers, numb shoulders and days when he "couldn't even stand up", Mete Gazoz went through all these before winning Turkey's first-ever Olympic archery gold at the Tokyo Games.

Gazoz, who at just 22 delivered his country's first Olympic medal in 2021, still remembers the pain, blisters, and exhaustion that marked his journey after a humbling 2016 Rio Games debut.

But Gazoz doesn't wish to offer any advice to the Indians for 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, insisting they are already performing "at the same level" as him and fully capable of ending the long wait for a medal.

"I trained every day around 10 hours. And I shot 300-400 arrows on the average every day," the 26-year-old told PTI in an exclusive interview from New Delhi after winning the inaugural Archery Premier League for Rajputana Royals.

He recalls his obsession vividly.

"Sometimes my finger was bleeding. Sometimes my shoulder, I didn't have power anymore. Sometimes my leg, I couldnt stand up. I couldn't walk. Sometimes I couldn"t climb stairs. Sometimes my fingers, my knees -- every part of body, it happened something.

"Five years until the Olympics and really tough time. Yeah, that was painful, but I had to do it. I didn't care whether it was painful, how hard or easy. Didn’t matter." Gazoz had qualified a lowly 29th in 2016 Rio Games, winning a shoot-off in the opening round before losing to Dutchman Sjef van den Berg. That defeat motivated him to strive for Tokyo.

In Tokyo, Gazoz overcame world No. 1 Brady Ellison (quarterfinals) and 2012 silver medallist Takaharu Furukawa (semifinals) before rallying from 1-3 down to beat Italy's Mauro Nespoli 6-4 to become men's individual champion.

"Yes, actually journey started too early. I was three years old. But actual journey started in 2016 after Rio Games," he recalled.

"After 2016, my coach (former Olympian Goktug Ergin) and I talked about the next Olympics. We had a plan for four years -- we can win Olympics. After Rio, I just focused Tokyo.” He worked through tears, frustration, and rare moments of joy, all in a single day.

"After four years, we were going to Olympics and finally I felt I can win. That day I woke up and said to myself, 'Today, time to shine.' It was a really tough journey." 'Indians are on same level, can win in Olympics' ============================== Four-time Olympian Deepika Kumari came closest but fell short each time, enduring quarterfinal exits in three successive editions. Across events, she has crashed out in the last-eight stage six times.

In Rio 2016, she was part of the women's team that lost in the quarterfinals. In Tokyo, she exited at the same stage in both the mixed team and individual events, and in Paris, history repeated in women's team and individual categories.

Now preparing for her fifth Olympic appearance in 2028, Deepika remains India's most consistent archer, still chasing that elusive medal.

Refusing to give any "advice", Gazoz believes it's only a matter of time for the Indians.

"I can’t say anything because they are so good and so high-level archers. That part of Indian archery, same like me," he said.

"I can't give advice, because they know how to win Olympics. But this is really hard." He was especially impressed by India's rising talent Dhiraj Bommadevara and feels the next generation has what it takes to end the long drought.

"He (Dhiraj) is really good. Always tough to beat. I respect him. Dhiraj, Deepika, Ankita (Bhakat). Also, compound mixed event is there in 2028, so there's Jyoti (Surekha Vennam), Abhishek (Verma), Ojas (Deotale). They’re all good. It doesn’t matter who wins the medal. The important thing is winning the first medal, right?" Nobody can say I was 'lucky' ================= When he won the Tokyo Olympics gold, some felt "luck" had played a part since no Korean stood on his way and the all-time record Olympic gold medallist Kim Woo-jin made a surprise quarterfinals exit.

"I can't say I was lucky because I didn't shoot against Korea. I shot against Brady and won that Olympics. He was the last world champion, world No. 1 then. Actually, nobody can say Mete lucky to win Olympics." Last year in Paris, he ran into the Korean legend Woo-jin and lost for the fifth time in a row making a quarterfinal exit.

"That match was really stressful. He shot better than me and he beat me. I respect him. Next time, I will win. I'm waiting for the correct time." From being world No. 1 after Tokyo, Gazoz has now slipped to 10, but the 2023 world champion isn't worried.

"After Olympics, I needed rest, I couldnt practice. But now my form is fine... We have a four-year plan. It's not about world championship or ranking. It's my team plan just about Olympics. I have more experience now and I'm 100 per cent ready for 2028." Enjoying India and APL triumph ==================== On his maiden visit to India, the Olympic champion had a triumphant campaign as he also soaked in the warmth, food, and format of the new franchise league.

"I’m really enjoying in India. Everything fine, food so nice, competition perfect.

"It's really nice country. It’s a really different format, different competition. It's fun, really enjoyed, would like to come back again," he signed off. PTI TAP PDS PDS