As the Paris Olympics loom, the world's largest sporting event is just 20 days away. India is preparing to send a contingent of nearly 120 athletes, including a robust Athletics team led by the defending champion in men's javelin, Neeraj Chopra. The contingent also includes a 21-member Shooting team and a 16-member men's hockey squad.
Neeraj Chopra, the javelin superstar, is aiming to make history by becoming the first Indian athlete to win back-to-back gold medals. Chopra, who last competed at the Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku, Finland, on June 18, is currently training in Germany. With a best throw of 85.97m, he clinched the gold medal at the Paavo Nurmi Games. His next appearance will be at the Olympics, as the Paris Diamond League is not part of his competition calendar.
In the realm of badminton, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty are also medal hopefuls. The duo hasn't competed since the Singapore Open in May, where they lost in the first round. This setback affected their ranking, dropping them to World No. 3 from the top spot. Despite narrowly missing out on a quarterfinal berth in the last Olympics, they remain hopeful, having won two of their three group matches.
Boxing also holds promise for India, with Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Lovlina Borgohain aiming for her second Olympic medal. Lovlina was recently in action at the Grand Prix tournament in the Czech Republic, where she won silver. She is currently in Saarbrucken, Germany, for a month-long training camp, after which she will head to Paris.
The men's hockey team, led by Harmanpreet Singh, is also gearing up for the Olympics. The team is currently training in Bengaluru and will soon fly to Switzerland for a team bonding camp. They are also expected to play a few friendlies before reaching Paris. The team aims to break a long-standing drought, as India has not won back-to-back medals at the Olympics since 1972 in Munich.
In wrestling, Vinesh Phogat is preparing for the Spain Grand Prix. After the event in Spain, she will be off to France for a 20-day training stint in preparation for the Olympics. She was last in action at the Budapest Ranking Series in June, where she lost to China's Jiang Zhu in the 50kg quarterfinals.
Nikhat Zareen, a two-time world champion in boxing, is aiming for greater glory in Paris, where she will be making her Olympic debut. She is currently training at the Olympic Centre in Saarbrucken, Germany, alongside five other boxers.
PV Sindhu, a two-time Olympic medallist in badminton, is physically and mentally preparing for her third Olympics. She is currently training with her coach Agus Dwi Santoso and her team in Saarbrucken, Germany. Sindhu aims to change the colour of her medal, implying she is striving for gold after winning silver in Rio 2016 and bronze in Tokyo 2020.
Mirabai Chanu, a weightlifter, is looking to get on the Olympic podium once again in Paris after her scintillating performance in Tokyo earned her a silver medal. She has been training at the NIS Patiala and will be heading to France next week to acclimatise to the conditions before her big competition.
Sift Kaur Samra, the Asian Games gold medallist, made it to the Paris squad in women's 50m rifle 3 positions after an outstanding performance in the four-stage Olympic selection trials. She was in action at the Munich World Cup earlier last month where she won the bronze medal, missing silver by only 0.1 point to Han Jiayu of China.
Aditi Ashok, a golfer, will represent India for the third time at the Olympics. She has not been in great form as she failed to secure a top-10 finish this season but she'll be hoping to repeat her Tokyo heroics and also go a step further in terms of clinching a medal.
These athletes have been preparing rigorously for the upcoming Olympics, with their recent performances and fitness levels indicating promising prospects for India. Their journey to the Olympics has been marked by intense training, strategic planning, and unwavering determination. As the world watches, these athletes carry the hopes of a nation on their shoulders, aiming to make history and bring glory to India.
