Shobha keen to improve performance

New Delhi:

Heptathlete J J Shobha, who caught the eye of the nation with a heroic performance at the Athens Olympics, tonight said she was looking forward to improve her performance in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. "My injury prevented me from giving an improved performance but I will do better next time (in Beijing)," she told reporters at the airport after arriving in New Delhi from Athens. At the Olympics 2004, she braved an excruciating finishing a creditable 11th in the gruelling event. The 26-year-old, who went close to her national record gathering 6172 points ignoring a knee ligament tear, was also happy that she got to compete with the world's best. "It was my first Olympics and it gave me valuable experience," she said. Among other athletes who returned, via Dubai, were members of the national record breaking women's 4x400m relay team, excluding K M Beenamol. Beenamol and K M Binu, who broke the national record in men's 400m, will return after two weeks after spending a vacation in Germany. Long jump star Anju Bobby George, meanwhile, left for her base in Paris from Athens. (PTI)