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I have always been small and one of the smallest heptathletes out there. And earlier in my career, I was faced with coaches and athletes who felt I was too small to be a multi-eventer. It gives you a push to show you can do it.

I think everyone in the heptathlon is improving together, so it is a very hard event to compete in.

The heptathlon world record is nice, but the decathlon is the event. I think the heptathlon is more like a practice. There is something completely different about the decathlon.

When I was in school, there was no such thing as girls' athletics.

We all know that girls who compete in sports perform better in school, are physically healthier and have a stronger self-esteem.

The sport is called artistic gymnastics. So you do have to be a little bit of an actress.

People assume a lot of things about gymnasts - that the girls work too hard, it's way too much for them, they are too young to work so hard.

I grew up as an athlete doing judo, so I didn't really have a conventional, feminine body type.

Thankfully, I found athletics. My mum didn't like it at first, but the funny thing is that, now, she's the biggest athletics fan out there. She's a real expert, and she's got all the heptathlon books.

Female success stories from sporting events like the Olympic Games have played a role in shifting the Indian perception to see the female athlete as a hero and a role model for young Indian girls.