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Wow! What a journey it has been! Two weeks ago, India sent her biggest ever contingent to the Olympics in hope of a better performance than a forgettable outing in Rio five years ago. Now, just a day before the sporting carnival comes to an end, one can proudly say that India indeed has been exceptional, giving their best performance ever in the history of the global sporting event. Yet, this victory of having outperformed every expectation seems to be very sweet at the moment. India’s Medal Winners at Tokyo Olympic Games 2020: From Neeraj Chopra’s Historic Gold to Bajrang Punia’s Bronze, Here’s Full List of Indian Athletes Who Managed Podium Finish at the 32nd Summer Games
Statistically, the Tokyo sojourn has been India's best in the country's history. India won a total of seven medals-( one gold, two silver and three bronze), which outshined their performance from the 2012 London Olympics where the country ended up with a total of six medals-(two silver and four bronze). And impactfully, this brave-hearted performance by the Indian athletes in Tokyo is sure to create some ripples back in India where many new young athletes would perhaps feel more confident about pursuing a career in the sport of their choice. Let us take a look at some of the takeaways from India's performance at the Tokyo Olympics 2020:
1) Neeraj Chopra--the new face of Indian athletics: Neeraj Chopra is a name that Indians would not forget in quite a very long time to come. And why would they? The 23-year old just fetched India her first-ever gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics and Indians throughout the world couldn't be more proud. He also won the country its first-ever medal in track and field athletics, after Norman Pritchard's silver medals in the 1900 Paris Games. All of this, in his very first Olympics! He was tipped by many to secure a podium finish but he outperformed those expectations. He made India watch a javelin throw event at a time when the country's much-famed cricket team was in action! Also, with this medal, he can well and truly be the face of Indian athletics. Prove me wrong!
2) The renaissance of hockey: Hockey has been the national sport of India but many wouldn't have realized it beyond the textbooks that gave out this information. The Indian hockey setup always seemed to be one that had a lot of potential but never really made it big at the Olympics, especially after 1980 when the men's team won gold by defeating Spain in the final. This time, that script was rewritten. The Indian men's team put up a splendid show to win the bronze medal--a first in 41 years--and this has once again, made Indians take notice of their team being a rising giant, if not a dominant force in world hockey. The women's hockey team, with their best-ever finish, also sent out a message that they weren't to be ignored and one can predict that the journey for them is only to be on an upward curve from now.
3) PV Sindhu delivers once again: When Saina Nehwal had won the bronze medal in badminton back in the 2012 London Olympics, little did she know that it would inspire a newer generation of players, who would be willing to take that performance up by another level. And here came PV Sindhu. The Andhra-born shuttler was one of India's shining stars in Rio where the country had a rather forgettable performance--winning just two medals. But Sindhu's silver medal win in Rio was just an indication of bigger and better things to come. She practiced hard, rose to prominence in the World Championships and once again delivered India another medal at the Tokyo Olympics-becoming the first Indian woman to win two Olympic medals in individual sports.
4) Wrestlers continue to fetch medals: Wrestling has always been one of India's strong areas in global sporting competitions and the Tokyo Olympics is just a testimony to that fact. Sushil Kumar's bronze medal win in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and a subsequent silver in 2012 (also Yogeshwar Dutt's bronze) helped Indians believe that their wrestlers too can pack a serious punch in international events. Sakshi Malik turned out to be India's lone wrestler with a medal in Rio 2016 and in Tokyo, that number doubled. India found an unlikely wrestling star in Ravi Kumar Dahiya, who became the only Indian to win silver in the Olympics after Kumar. Bajrang Punia didn't disappoint as well, storming his way to a bronze-medal finish. There were promising performances from Deepak Punia and Vinesh Phogat as well. If this is to go by, then Indian wrestling surely does look set for a very bright future!
5) Don't sleep on Indian golf! Not many would have thought that India could even perform well in golf at the Olympics. In India, it is looked as a luxury sport by many and there aren't many who seem to regularly follow the sport. But Aditi Ashok made Indians wake up at 4 am in the morning to sit up and witness history. Yes, she might have missed out on a medal, that too just by a whisker but her promising performance is sure to turn heads back in India and make the administration, as well as people, believe that there lies a very bright future for Indian golf ahead, with athletes like Aditi Ashok leading the way.
Lastly, athletes like Mirabai Chanu and Lovlina Borgohain always inspire people, making them believe that no matter how humble one's background is, hard work, persistence and determination can go a long way in determining an athletes future. No matter the hardships, lack of facilities and other difficulties, if one is ready to put in the hard yards, they can surely succeed and that's a fact that once again got strengthened by the spirited performances by Chanu and Borgohain. Not to forget Mary Kom, who has perhaps competed in her last Olympics.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 07, 2021 10:05 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
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