Gold fever hits Bangkok

Thai Olympians led by weightlifting gold medallists Sopita Tanasan and Sukanya Srisurat revelled in what they described as a career highlight when they paraded through Bangkok streets to celebrate their achievements at the Rio Games yesterday.

The Thai delegation put on a strong showing in the first Olympics held in South America, returning with a medal haul of two gold, two silver and two bronze to record the country’s second best performance at the Games.

Even those who ended up empty-handed were all-smiles yesterday as they paraded from Hua Mark Indoor Stadium along Rama IX Road to Victory Monument before arriving at Government House for a festive banquet.

Each of the six medallists rode in an open-topped in a procession led by a phalanx of motorbikes on a humid afternoon in the capital. Thousands of cheering fans braved the heat to line the route and were rewarded with waves and smiles from the country’s returning heroes.      

“I’m thrilled as it’s the first time I’ve ever experienced something like this,” said Tawin Hanprab, whose silver in the 58kg class was Thailand’s first in Olympic men’s taekwondo and made him the country’ youngest medallist, at 18 years and 17 days.

After coming from nowhere to claim Thailand’s second silver in the Korean martial arts after Buttree Puedpong’ Beijing Games’ effort eight years ago, Tawin, who was seeded 15th in Rio, said the joy of clinching the biggest title of his career so far had barely sunk in.     

“It [the silver] far exceeded my expectation. It’s a dream-like achievement since I never thought I would win a medal at the Olympics. All my dedication in training was worth it. I’ll keep training and also resume my studies after having to drop classes for training,” said the Chula student.

Tawin’s team-mate Panipak Wongpattanakit, who claimed a bronze to ensure the Kingdom won a medal for the fourth successive time in women’s taekwondo since Yaowapa Boorapolchai finished third in Athens in 2004, was equally excited to take part in the parade.

“I’m really happy to see that Thai people always support us. I’m satisfied with my performance to a certain degree but I still wanted to win a gold,” said the 18-year-old, who failed to add the Olympic title to the world championship title she won last year.

Star golfer Thongchai Jaidee, among several high-profile Thai athletes who failed to shine in Rio, echoed those sentiments.

“I’m really happy. After playing golf for 20 years, I’ve never had an experience like this, with the car procession in front of us. 

Being here makes the  athletes so proud. I would like to congratulate those who won Olympic medals. They are national heroes.

“It’s my first Olympic appearance following the inclusion of golf at the Games for the first time in more than a century. [Despite not winning a medal] I’m still excited to be here today. We’re all the athletes and we just want to bring success to the country.

“It’s really a good day, with athletes from several sports here today. The atmosphere is really warm. I want to see this atmosphere again in the future,” said the world No 42.