Neeraj Chopra’s medal at Paris Olympics not quite a silver lining in athletics | Paris Olympics 2024 News
A 27-member Indian athletics contingent, headlined by Tokyo Olympics gold medallist Neeraj Chopra, competed at the Paris Olympics. They had just one medal to show at the end of the Games – Neeraj’s silver in javelin throw.
A lot was expected from the athletics contingent after their impressive show at the 2022 Commonwealth Games and the following 2022 Asian Games.The CWG saw Indian track and field athletes bring home eight medals – 1 gold, 4 silver and 3 bronze. Then at the, they had 29 medals – 6 gold, 14 silver and 9 bronze.
With such spectacular performances in the two years leading up to the Paris Games, the athletics ecosystem in India anticipated at least three medals from the Olympics. Neeraj’s medal colour too was unexpected.
Asian Games champion and CWG silver-medallist Avinash Sable was the only Indian athlete other than Neeraj to make the finals in the track and field events. Sable finished 11th in the men’s 3000m steeplechase final.
“When 27 athletes qualified for the Paris Games, which was our highest-ever representation at the Olympics, the general mood among our athletics fraternity was quite upbeat. Everyone thought that Neeraj’s gold was a done deal; and apart from him, we would win at least two-three more medals.
“Sable was one contender, the men’s 4x400m relay team had built expectations after their outstanding show at the World Championships last year, but things didn’t materialize as expected. This points towards a necessity to create a larger pool of elite athletes, if we desire more than one medal at the Olympic level,” NIS-trained athletics coach Mahipal Gaur reflected.
According to official data from the Sports Authority of India‘s (SAI) Mission Olympic Cell (MOC), the government spent Rs 96.08 crore for athletics in the current Olympic cycle. It’s the biggest chunk in the close to Rs 470 crore that had been spent on India’s preparation for the Games this time across 16 disciplines. In the previous Olympic cycle, athletics received Rs 5.38 crore.
ATHLETICS: ATHLETES: 27 | MEDAL: 1 SILVER
A lot was expected from the athletics contingent after their impressive show at the 2022 Commonwealth Games and the following 2022 Asian Games.The CWG saw Indian track and field athletes bring home eight medals – 1 gold, 4 silver and 3 bronze. Then at the, they had 29 medals – 6 gold, 14 silver and 9 bronze.
With such spectacular performances in the two years leading up to the Paris Games, the athletics ecosystem in India anticipated at least three medals from the Olympics. Neeraj’s medal colour too was unexpected.
Asian Games champion and CWG silver-medallist Avinash Sable was the only Indian athlete other than Neeraj to make the finals in the track and field events. Sable finished 11th in the men’s 3000m steeplechase final.
“When 27 athletes qualified for the Paris Games, which was our highest-ever representation at the Olympics, the general mood among our athletics fraternity was quite upbeat. Everyone thought that Neeraj’s gold was a done deal; and apart from him, we would win at least two-three more medals.
“Sable was one contender, the men’s 4x400m relay team had built expectations after their outstanding show at the World Championships last year, but things didn’t materialize as expected. This points towards a necessity to create a larger pool of elite athletes, if we desire more than one medal at the Olympic level,” NIS-trained athletics coach Mahipal Gaur reflected.
According to official data from the Sports Authority of India‘s (SAI) Mission Olympic Cell (MOC), the government spent Rs 96.08 crore for athletics in the current Olympic cycle. It’s the biggest chunk in the close to Rs 470 crore that had been spent on India’s preparation for the Games this time across 16 disciplines. In the previous Olympic cycle, athletics received Rs 5.38 crore.
ATHLETICS: ATHLETES: 27 | MEDAL: 1 SILVER
