Indian MMA athlete Suchika Tariyal, who secured a historic bronze medal at the Asian Games, encourages youth to take up sports. She opened up about her journey, overcoming financial challenges with her family's support.

Indian mixed martial arts (MMA) athlete Suchika Tariyal, who secured a historic bronze medal at the Asian Games, encouraged the youth to take up sports and opened up about her journey so far. Suchika secured India's first-ever MMA medal at the Asian Games after finishing third in the women's traditional 60kg category. She lost to Singapore's Teo Hui Hoon in the semifinal. Speaking to ANI about winning the medal upon her arrival at Mumbai airport, Suchika said, "It was a wonderful journey. My goal was to win a medal for my country, and I achieved that. It feels amazing; seeing all of you here to welcome me makes me very happy. Everything went really well."

'Our government is doing a great job'

Giving a message to the youth, she encouraged them to take up sport, pointing out the hard work put in by the government to promote sports. "Our government is doing a great job promoting sports. I encourage as many young people as possible to take up a sport; they too can win a medal for the country and bring glory to our nation," she said.

'My family has always supported me'

Speaking on her journey, Suchika said that even though there were financial challenges and she was not good at studies, she got full support of her family and later her husband. Paying back her family's trust with this medal feels a lot to the athlete. "My family has always supported me. I was not good at studies so they felt I could do well in sports. They kept supporting, my interest in sport grew. There were some financial challenges, but neither my family nor my husband ever let me feel the burden of that. They believed in me and trusted that I would achieve something, and I have lived up to that trust. That’s what matters most to me," she signed off.

Suchika's bronze medal marked a milestone for Indian MMA, which made its debut at the Asian Games 2026. (ANI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)