Prince says there is lot to improve

By A Staff Reporter,Kathmandu, Aug.1: Nepali badminton star Prince Dahal lost all his three matches but learned a lot from the Paris Olympics. 

After wrapping up his first summer games on Wednesday, Prince said he needed to improve in many areas. “This Olympics was very important for me. Due to a lack of experience, I could not perform well. But I learned a lot from it.” 

Prince, who is in Group P, played his last match against Israel’s Misha Zilberman on Wednesday. As previous two matches, he lost this too in straight two sets by 21-12 and 21-10. He only lasted for 36 minutes against Zilberman. 

He lost his opener against Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen and second against Ireland’s Nhat Nguyen in straight two sets. 

Once the world junior number one player was playing his first Olympic. He was selected from the universality quota for Summer Games 2024. 

“I found out that I lack the strength to compete at this level. I needed to improve my shots. I also need more match exposures,” he said. 

He, however, hoped the experience he gained in Paris would benefit him for his next Olympics. “But for that regular training and competition is needed. We lack badminton competitions and regular trainings in Nepal.”

Prince stressed the need for government and private sector to invest in badminton.

The only player left to participate from Nepal is Santoshi Shrestha, who arrived in Paris on Tuesday. She will be participating in women’s marathon on the concluding day of the Olympics.