Paris Olympics 2024: Top 10 Indian athletes who could win medals and their key challenges

We are just a few days away from the Paris 2024 Olympics, which kicks off with an opening ceremony on 26 July on the River Seine. With the quadrennial event fast approaching, the most important thing on the minds of all Indian fans is how many medals India can win at Paris 2024 and who are the top contenders from the country. India won a record seven medals at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, which is their best-ever medal haul.

Can India better that record in Paris?

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We take a look at 10 key athletes who can win a medal for India at the Paris Olympics 2024.

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1. Neeraj Chopra (Javelin Throw)

Biggest achievement: Neeraj Chopra is the reigning world and Olympic champion in men’s javelin throw. That’s an unprecedented level of success for an Indian athlete. He has also won gold medals at the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games and a Diamond League Trophy.

Medal chances and challenges: Despite not being able to breach the 90m mark, Neeraj has almost always emerged as the best thrower in the events that he has entered in the last few years. Last year he won the Asian Games and World Championships golds. This year he clinched gold at the Paavo Nurmi Games, came second at the Doha Diamond League, and won the Federation Cup at home. He’s in good form but his participation in 2024 has been restricted to just three events due to an adductor issue.

2. Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty (Badminton)

Biggest achievement: They were the world’s No.1 men’s doubles pair recently.

Medal chances and challenges: After losing in the Malaysia Open and Indian Open finals earlier this year, Satwik-Chirag won the French Open and Thailand Open. They are in good form and are expected to medal at Paris but Satwik had a shoulder injury recently and how much he has recovered from it will matter a lot.

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3. Antim Panghal (Wrestling)

Biggest achievement: Former World Junior Champion and 2023 World Championships bronze medallist in 53kg category.

Medal chances and challenges: Antim has received fourth seed in her field and that has helped her avoid top wrestlers like Tokyo 2020 silver medallist Qianyu Pang, two-time world champion Akari Fujinami, and two-time European champion Emma Malmgren. This gives her a good chance to reach the medal rounds but the Haryana wrestler will have to be consistent in her first Olympics.

4. Lovlina Borgohain (Boxing)

Biggest achievement: Bronze medal winner at Tokyo Olympics in 69kg event.

Medal chances and challenges: She has now moved up to the 75kg category after the 69kg event was scrapped for the Olympics. Last year she won World Championships gold in the 75kg event and silver at the Grand Prix Usti nad Labem in the Czech Republic last month. She is seen as a big contender to medal once again.

5. PV Sindhu (Badminton)

Biggest achievement: First Indian badminton player to win silver (2016 Rio) and only Indian woman athlete to win two Olympic medals. She won her second medal (bronze) at Tokyo 2020.

Medal chances and challenges: Sindhu has won two Olympic medals in two Games and is known for coming good in big tournaments. The ace Indian shuttler has got an easy group where she faces Estonia’s Kristin Kuuba and Maldives’ Fathimath Nabaaha Abdul Razzaq. She can face reigning Olympic champion Chen Yu Fei in the quarter-finals if she reaches that far. However that’s not her only concern, it’s also her poor form that saw her exit the Indonesia Open and Singapore Open early in 2024.

6. Mirabai Chanu (Weightlifting)

Biggest achievement: Silver at Tokyo 2020 and gold at 2017 World Championships.

Medal chances and challenges: The Manipuri weightlifter will enter the Paris Olympics as one of the favourites. She is one of the most experienced in her field but has been struggling with hip, thigh, and wrist injuries recently.

7. Indian men’s hockey team

Biggest achievement: The Indian men’s hockey team has won eight gold medals and recently they won bronze at Tokyo 2020. Multiple players from the bronze-winning side are part of the current squad.

Medal chances and challenges: India are in Pool B which also includes defending champions Belgium, Australia, Argentina, New Zealand and Ireland. With four teams qualifying for the knockouts, India have a bright chance but the toughest job will be progressing further. In the last FIH Pro League India finished seventh.

8. Nikhat Zareen (Boxing)

Biggest achievement: Two-time world champion.

Medal chances and challenges: Having only lost two bouts since 2022, Nikhat (50kg) is in top form and a strong contender but her semi-final defeat to Thailand’s Raksat Chuthamat at Asian Games 2023 is also a reminder that big tournaments can be unpredictable.

9. Manu Bhaker (Shooting)

Biggest achievement: 2023 World Championships gold medallist.

Medal chances and challenges: She was the most successful athlete at the Olympic Selection Trials (OST) Rifle/Pistol and will represent India in Women’s 10m air pistol, Women’s 25m pistol, and 10m air pistol mixed team events. She is the only Indian participating in more than one individual event in shooting. Manu had also entered the Toko Olympics as world No.1 but failed to reach the finals in all her three events. The most important thing for her in Paris will be how she handles the pressure of the Games.

10. Aman Sehrawat (Wrestling)

Biggest achievement: 2022 World U23 champion, 2023 Asian Championships gold medallist, and 2023 Asian Games bronze medal winner in the 57kg category.

Medal chances and challenges: Aman is the only Indian male wrestler to qualify for the Paris Olympics. The 20-year-old has impressed with his performances in just two years in the senior circuit and has been seeded sixth. But he can face three-time World Championships bronze medallist, Arsen Harutyunyan of Armenia, in the quarter-final, and from thereon his journey is only going to get tougher.