The Paris Olympics 2024 was an eye-opener of sorts for the Indian contingent that went on bag six medals in their entire campaign. While one might look at it as a hugely satisfying campaign, with multiple medals coming from shooting, and one confirmed medal from Neeraj Chopra; it was an outing that instilled the belief in the fans, that the Indian sport persons are good enough to do much better.
Apart from the six medals in the kitty, there were six fourth place finishes, that could have taken the tally well over 10. So, as 2024 comes to an end, InsideSport rates 6 Indian superstars of Paris Olympics, out of 10.
Neeraj Chopra (Silver, Men’s Javelin) – 9/10
What bad can anyone say about the best javelin thrower in the world. Yes, it wasn’t a gold this time around, like Tokyo 2020, but it was a silver medal, nonetheless from the Haryana lad. He hurled the javelin to a massive 89.45m to win the second prize, but that wasn’t enough to get him the old. Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem was the deserved winner of the gold. But to maintain this level of consistency, Neeraj deserves 9/10..all this while nursing an injury.
Manu Bhaker (Bronze, 10m Air Pistol & 10m Air Pistol Team) – 10/10
After a poor 2020 Olympics, many had doubted Manu Bhaker‘s credentials as a shooter. But she proved everyone wrong, as she returned home with two Olympic bronze medals. In this process, she also became the first Indian, to achieve the feat in the same Olympics — bringing her at par in stature with Neeraj Chopra and PV Sindhu. She finished 4th in the 25m air pistol event, but hey, two medals is a huge deal.
Sarabjot Sigh (Bronze, 10m Air Pistol Team) – 8/10
Sarabjot, along with Manu bagged this medal for India. The duo beat Republic of Korea’s Oh Ye Jin and Wonho Lee 16-10 in the bronze medal match. It must be admitted, he had a shaky start with an 8.6, but then soon recovered after that. In the last shot, under immense pressure, while the Korean team shot 9 and 9.5, with Manu scoring 9.4, Sarabjot confirmed the medal with 10.2.
Swapnil Kusale (Bronze, Men’s 50m Rifle 3 Positions) – 9/10
No one in their wildest of dreams, have hoped for a medal in this discipline. Kusale was not even an underdog in the event. but shot 451.4 in the final to land the third position. In fact, he narrowly made the final, and qualified in the seventh position only, surprising many. More decorated Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar failed to make the finale even.
Aman Sehrawat (Bronze, Men’s 57 Kg Freestyle Wrestling) – 10/10
This medal by Aman Sehrawat brought more of a relief than jubilation. Wrestling, that has been India’s most preferred sport at the Olympics for some editions now, was at a risk of producing no medals in Paris 2024. While Vinesh Phogat was disqualified from the competition despite reaching the final, the wrestler made sure, India did not return empty-handed from the mat.
Indian Men’s Hockey Team (Bronze) – 10/10
Coming into the tournament the Indian men’s hockey team wasn’t in the best of form. In the group stages, India finished second in Group B, with three wins — and the highlight was beating Australia. Come the quarters, Harmanpreet Singh & Co. beat Great Britain in penalty shootout, lost to Germany 2-3 in the semis, and then beat Spain 2-1 in the third-place match. This was their second successive bronze at the Olympics.
