Top 5 Indian Medal Contenders who Disappointed at Paris Olympics 2024

At the Paris Olympics 2024, India sent a team of 117 athletes competing in 16 sports, considered the country’s most well-prepared squad ever. With high hopes from fans eager to see a historic performance, the results were disappointing overall. Many top athletes who were expected to win medals fell short, and the outcomes in sports like badminton, archery, and boxing disappointed fans.

Here are five Indian athletes who were anticipated to win medals but underperformed at the Paris Olympics 2024.

5. Sift Kaur Samra

At just 22 years old, Sift Kaur is the current world record-holder and Asian champion in the 50m rifle 3 position event. India viewed her as one of its top prospects for a medal.

Unfortunately, the stress of competing in her first Olympics seemed to be too much for her. Sift had a tough time in the qualifying round and ended up 31st out of 32 shooters, which resulted in her elimination.

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4. Deepika Kumari

For more than ten years, Deepika Kumari has been a leading figure in Indian archery, collecting medals at almost all international and continental events, though not at the Olympics. The 2024 Paris Games were her fourth Olympic appearance, and she entered with strong hopes of earning a medal.

Unfortunately, Deepika did not surpass her performance from the Tokyo 2020 Games. She lost to South Korea’s Nam Su-Hyeon 6-4 in the quarter-finals. Additionally, her performance in the women’s team event was subpar, leading to India’s quarter-final exit with a 6-0 loss to the Netherlands.

3. PV Sindhu

A two-time Olympic medalist, faced injuries and fluctuating performance before the Games. Despite these hurdles, many hoped that Paris 2024 would be the pinnacle of her distinguished career.

Sindhu’s goal of becoming India’s first three-time Olympic medalist fell short when China’s He Bing Jiao defeated her in straight sets (19-21, 14-21) in the Round of 16. This loss was significant as it was Sindhu’s first Olympic defeat to a Chinese opponent and the first time she finished an Olympic tournament without a medal.

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2. Nikhat Zareen

A two-time world champion and one of India’s leading medal hopefuls, was expected to advance far in the competition. Unfortunately, Wu Yu of China, the current Asian Games gold medalist, knocked her out in the Round of 16 with a 0-5 defeat.

Despite Nikhat being unseeded and facing a challenging draw, supporters had expected a better showing from her.

1. Amit Panghal

Former World No. 1 Amit Phangal went into his second Olympic Games with high hopes for a medal in the men’s 51kg boxing weight class, especially after a strong performance in the qualifiers.

Amit received a bye in the first round but lost to Patrick Chinyemba of Zambia in the Round of 16, who won by a split decision (4-1). This result was similar to his performance at the Tokyo Olympics, where he also lost in the Round of 16 after receiving a bye in the first round.

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