They say dreams that visit in daytime cause more pain and disappointment. But visions of Indian athletes winning 10 medals in the Olympic Games in Paris should no longer count as a dream. It is a realistic expectation that draws from the evolution of Indian sport in the recent years, including a massive attitudinal shift in the ecosystem that is cranking itself up to facilitate better returns.
Yes, there have been disappointments thus far. For instance, archery has sent out a lone qualifier so far, male boxers have yet to secure a berth, the women’s hockey team is awaiting a ticket and wrestling has not made the waves it did in the past with only one assured slot until now. But there is reason to believe that India will field its largest contingent ever in Paris 2024.
Cast your mind back to Tokyo 2020 where India finished with its best showing ever in an Olympics by winning seven medals, including a gold and two silver, from six disciplines. Besides Neeraj Chopra’s Javelin Throw gold, India won medals in badminton, boxing, hockey, weightlifting and wrestling. And golfer Aditi Ashok went oh-so-close to finding herself a place on the podium.
Some years ago, a medal in Olympic Games athletics competition seemed like a mirage but now Neeraj Chopra has infused a belief among a number of his team-mates that they can follow in his footsteps. It would be apt if track and field competition sees two Indians climb the podium in Paris.
Badminton ace HS Prannoy and doubles specialists Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty should be counted among those who can add Olympic medals to their collection. And one can never discount PV Sindhu’s appetite to unfurl her best in the big ticket events. Alongside wrestler Sushil Kumar, she is already India’s most successful individual athlete and can add a third this time.
The shooting hope.
The 15-member shooting squad caused the biggest disappointment in Tokyo returning empty handed. There is hope that the shooters will have learnt lessons from that experience and find ways in which to contribute to the medal haul this time around. It is a discipline that can earn multiple medals for the country this time and drive the tally to double figures.
After medals in three successive Olympic Games from 2004, including an epoch-making gold by Abhinav Bindra in Beijing in 2008, shooting drew a blank in Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo. It is time for the shooters to put their hands up and be counted among medallists, not an easy task by any stretch of imagination but not an impossible one either.
The manner in which India’s shooters won medals in 10 Olympic events in the Hangzhou Asian Games earlier this year gives arise to the hope that with the right backing and approach ahead of the Paris competition, they can provide some balm for the heartbreaks caused by the squad in Rio and Tokyo.
Weightlifter Mirabai Chanu (who will be hopefully in peak fitness after a complete rehab), and at least one women boxer and wrestler each as well as men’s hockey can be expected to win a medal in Paris and spur India to the double digit mark for the first time in Olympic history.
Of course I am well aware that back in 2016, there were official projections of more than a dozen medals. There was utter disappointment when India managed just two medals through PV Sindhu and Sakshi Malik. However, unlike in 2016, India now has a sharper focus on monitoring the athletes’ fitness and offers timely support for rehabilitation and recovery.
Of course, no medal is guaranteed and athletes have to turn up in optimum fitness and be prepared to deliver their best against all comers. They will have to be aware of the competition and bring their A game on the given day. The attitudinal change in Indian athletes, now wanting to win medals, is a good reason to believe that 10 Olympic Games medals in 2024 is not a pipedream.
While the athletes’ hunger and fearlessness are among the biggest reasons for optimism that India can touch double figures in Paris, Government’s support for their training and competition schedule has fuelled their journey. As has often been pointed out, the Olympic Games is not every four years. It is every day. And it is in ticking this box that India has done well.
Not many may have realised that if India had won four gold – shooting, boxing and wrestling could have ensured that – it would have finished among the top 20 in the medals table in Tokyo 2020. To some, that may seem an easier target to achieve in the Paris Olympic Games later this year than the 10 medals target that has a different ring to it.
So, is expecting 10 medals in the Olympics a pipedream? You know my thoughts. Tell me yours.
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