Paris Olympics 2024: A Look At The Remaining Medal Prospects Of India

With over 10 days of action, the 2024 Paris Olympics is now halfway completed. Despite some notable performances, the Indian medal tally has been underwhelming thus far. India has collected 3 medals in the tournament, all bronze, and all in shooting. On August 6th, Vinesh Phogat had secured at least a silver by advancing to the final of the 50 kg wrestling event. However, in a heartbreaking turn of events, the wrestler faced disqualification on the day of the final bout as she was overweight by 100 grams. It now appears that India may not surpass or even match the medal tally from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where the contingent collected 7 medals. However, there are still major events remaining for India at the Paris Olympics 2024, including the Javelin Throw. Read more to see the remaining medal prospects for India in the ongoing tournament.

Neeraj Chopra - Javelin Throw

Ahead of the 2024 Olympics, Neeraj Chopra was one of the leading contenders for a gold medal. Halfway through the season, Chopra stands as the only remaining prospect for gold after the exit of Vinesh Phogat, unless any of the other athletes pull off a miracle. With the current scenario making such a miracle unlikely, Chopra is carrying the hopes of Indians for a gold medal at the Paris Olympics. On Tuesday, Chopra began his Paris Olympics campaign with the Men’s Javelin qualifications.

His performance validated the trust the Indian audience has placed in him. Chopra threw 89.34 meters, his personal best in the qualifications. He subsequently qualified for the finals, scheduled for Thursday, August 8th. The defending champion recorded the second-best throw in the event, behind two-time world champion Anderson Peters of Grenada, who threw 88.63 meters, positioning himself as Chopra’s main competitor in the finals.

Indian Men’s Hockey Team

The Indian Men’s Hockey Team made some miraculous moves to enter the semi-finals of the Hockey event. India defeated Australia 3-2 in the group stage, securing a victory against the formidable team after 52 years. The team then delivered a spectacular win in the quarter-finals against Great Britain, booking their place in the semi-finals. Down to ten men due to defender Amit Rohidas receiving a red card in the quarter-finals, India, with goalkeeper PR Sreejesh at the helm, beat Britain 4-2 in the penalty shootout.

However, the team lost to Germany in the semi-finals. Germany reached the penultimate stage after defeating Argentina 3-2. The Germans eventually beat India with the same score late on Tuesday. While India missed out on the gold medal, the team can still secure a bronze. India is set to face Spain in the bronze medal match on Thursday. If the team continues their form that helped them edge past Great Britain, India could win its 4th bronze medal at the Paris Olympics 2024.

Apart from Chopra and the Hockey team, athletes like Avinash Sable and Mirabai Chanu are also in contention to add to the Indian medal haul. Mirabai Chanu opened the medal tally for India at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics by winning a silver in the weightlifting event. With weightlifting scheduled for the latter half of the Paris Olympics, Chanu will start her campaign on August 7th this season. Additionally, others still in the running at the ongoing Olympic Games include Manika Batra and Sreeja Akula in the Table Tennis team event, and Aditi Ashok and Diksha Dagar in the golf event.