MUMBAI: With the coronavirus pandemic bringing life to a standstill, the Olympics have been moved to 2021, thus extending the finish line for one of India's most decorated Olympians, Sushil Kumar.

The wrestler, who won a bronze in Beijing and silver in London four years later, will turn 37 next month and 38 by the time the 2021 Tokyo Olympics comes about.

"If he does make it, Tokyo will be his last Olympics," his long-time coach Satpal Singh said. "One year is very long in an athletes' life, so the Tokyo Games being delayed by a year will make some difference. But Sushil is very disciplined.

"Even now he's working hard towards maintaining his strength and endurance and will resume training as soon as he can. He knows Tokyo is his last chance, and he has a burning desire to win a gold for India."

Sushil is the only Indian to win medals at two separate Olympics in an individual event. But he won both the medals in the 66-kg freestyle category and is yet to achieve that degree of success once he moved up to the 74-kg division.

The unfortunate doping incident involving Narsingh Yadav, which saw the Mumbai-based wrestler being banned for four years, meant that India didn't have a competitor in the 74kg freetsyle at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

And it may yet turn into a two-horse race for qualification for India for the Tokyo Games with Narsingh allowed to return to the game this year.

"We will see how the qualification pans out," said Satpal, who has been working with Sushil since the wrestler was 12 years old.

"Because of the worldwide lockdown, there's no clear roadmap right now. As soon as things start opening up, he will be going to Russia for training. He feels that he can still fight with the same power and bring back a medal for India. If an athlete doesn't feel that why continue at all?"

The Indian wrestler had been laid low by a hand injury three months ago, but has now recovered from it.

Though grappling is out of question for now, he is on a training regimen to keep up the physicality. With the Olympics pushed back, the International Olympic Committee has said that June 29, 2021 is the new
deadline for qualification for all sports.

So far, three Indian male wrestlers have booked the quota: Bajrang Punia in 65kg, Ravi Dahiya in 57kg and Deepak Punia in 86kg.