Tokyo Olympics: Anirban Lahiri surprised at earning qualification to second consecutive Games
Anirban Lahiri is one of the top-ranked golfers from India, who is currently ranked 340th, while his highest rank to date happens to be 33rd. He took part in the 2016 Rio Olympics, while 2020 would be his second consecutive appearance.
FollowTop Indian golfer Anirban Lahiri has made the cut to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. He barely made it past, finishing as the 60th ranked competitor for the event.
However, he is seemingly surprised at earning qualification for the global competition, as he came up with a below-par performance. Nonetheless, now that he has earned the same, he is looking to make it count.
"It was a big surprise, I wasn't expecting it. Even though I've earned it, I don't feel like I've really earned it as I know how far below my potential I've played this year. It's a gift and an opportunity, so why would I throw it away," he said, reports PTI.
"I know what it is to be an Olympian as I've done it before and I don't want to be just an Olympian. I want to win a medal; I want to do something that makes a difference. I know winning a PGA TOUR event will do that, but winning a medal would even do more. I do have a certain responsibility towards the game and my country," he added.
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Lahiri qualified since he is the top-ranked golfer from the country, ranking 340th, while India just had a slot available. It would be his second successive appearance at the event, having first qualified during the 2016 Rio Olympics.
"This is why I play the game ... and to have the opportunity to represent your country and not just the representation as I feel like I'm playing really well. I feel I'm close to playing my best golf right now and for a lot of reasons, it makes sense for me. It means everything for me to go," he continued.
"I still have a lot of opportunities, including this week, to do what I need to do on TOUR. It's been a pretty tough year for me. I got off to a good start in the fall and lost the momentum in the West coast and started building back up and playing well with a good week in Texas and then, I had Covid and had it pretty bad for four weeks," he concluded by speaking on his preparations.
Lahiri is currently ranked 118 in the FedExCup rankings and would look to stay within the 125th rank to qualify for the playoffs. He has been a regular player in the PGA Tour since 2016.
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