When It Comes To Size, It Is Not Always Advantage Says Gowda

 Vikas Gowda never bawled as a kid, his father Shive says, recalling how relieved they were as parents to have an exceptionally quiet baby- a big baby, at that.
The 6’9 ½” refuses to cry hoarse even now when the big man of world athletics — he’s the tallest thrower — checks into the Commonwealth Games village at Glasgow, and stares at a peculiar problem wryly, before telling himself — ‘it’s ok. I’ll adjust.’
In front of the 2.06 metre man, is a typically average-sized English bed, a Lilliputan futon for Glasgow’s Gulliver. “We always have problems if Games are held here — London was the same. You stay in the village, and it’s all uniform. In hotels, they can arrange for a king-size bed, and in America, usually everything is extra-large — food portions and even bed sizes,” father Shive says, a little worried about how his son will cope up.
“The beds are the main thing, he couldn’t sleep too well, the first two days. We tried putting out a mattress on the floor, but he’ll need to adjust as it is a standard Games village. He understands and won’t crib but he’d had a bad experience at the Daegu Worlds where a bad bed left him with a stiff back,” Shive says.
The hop across the Atlantic, for India’s premier discus thrower, who is desperate for gold at these Commonwealth Games, comes with another headache: the wispy showers that’ve been drizzling on Glasgow the last couple of days, along with a wet chill.
“Because Vikas is tall, and if the throwing circle gets wet, it can get difficult to balance for a big boy like him. Other smaller athletes might not be troubled as much,” he says.
Phoenix, Arizona, where the 30-year-old trains at the John Godina centre, is a desert, where it refuses to rain.
“It is a major adjustment and can affect by 10-20 per cent if it should rain, but he’s experienced,” Shive says.