India failed to not win any medal on the final day of Rio Olympics on Sunday. It turned out to be a disappointing day as medal hopeful Yogeshwar Dutt lost in the opening round of 65 kg freestyle wrestling event. Marathoners Thonnakkal Gopi and Kheta Ram clocked their personal best timings to finish 25th and 26th respectively, while Nitendra Singh Rawat was the 84th athlete to complete the race.
After securing just two medals so far, the onus was on Yogeshwar to help India sign off on a high. But the 33-year-old wrestler failed to earn any point in the bout against Ganzorigiin Mandakhnaran of Mongolia. He lost 3-0.
Yogeshhwar, for some reasons, did not look his usual self and could not unlock the Mongolian's defence. After trailing 0-1, Yogeshwar looked determined in the second period, but Ganzorigiin scored two important points to make it difficult for the Indian wrestler.
Despite the defeat, Yogeshwar still had a chance of making it to the repechage round if Ganzorigiin reached the final. But the Mongolian lost in the quarterfinals. With Ganzorigiin's loss, India's hopes of winning a bronze medal also came to an end.
Long-distance runners Gopi and Ram might not have come close to winning a medal, but they gave their best which resulted in their personal best timings. Gopi finished with a timing of 2:15:25, while Ram clocked 2:15:26. However, Rawat might be disappointed with his 84th position. He finished with a timing of 2:22:52.
India finished 67th in the medals tally with two medals from Sakshi Malik (women's wrestling) and PV Sindhu (women's badminton). The next Olympics will be held in Tokyo in 2020.
