India’s budding paddler Archana Kamath has decided to call time on her playing career to pursue academics as she doesn’t really see a future for herself in the sport moving forward.
At 24 years of age, Archana’s decision has come across as a huge surprise and many are speculating that her decision is driven by the lack of financial returns. However, the paddler has quashed all the rumours and confirmed that her “passion for academics” has motivated her to make the call.
“If I have retired from competitive table tennis, it is only and only because of my passion for academics. Having been the recipient of extraordinary support, including financial, I can confidently say, that it wasn’t in any way a financial decision,” Archana told The Indian Express.
Archana reflected on her playing career with immense satisfaction and revealed that representing the country at the highest level in the sport was truly an honour. She also clarified that she received plenty of support during her playing career from organisations like Olympic Gold Quest (OGQ), Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) and Indian Oil among others.
“I have had a wonderful 15 years with table tennis, and there is no greater honour than getting an opportunity to give my best for my country. The last thing I want to do is pull people away from table tennis. It is an amazing sport that I have had the privilege of playing for a long time and my love for it continues.
“I have received extraordinary support, and I neither have the right nor inclination to complain on that front – doing so would be extremely unfair to the athletes who have really struggled for want of support,” she added while talking about OGQ, TOPS and Indian Oil.
Notably, Archana teamed up with Sreeja Akula and Manika Batra at the Paris Olympics to propel India into the quarters and scripted history as it was the first time an Indian team qualified for the quarters of the Summer Games in the sport.
