Tokyo Olympics Day 13 Highlights: Lovlina wins bronze, Ravi Dahiya qualifies for final

Some Indian athletes achieved big success on Wednesday.

Only four more days remain until the end of Tokyo 2020. Athletes from all over are aiming to ensure a dramatic end to the competition. On day 13 of the Tokyo Olympics, the People’s Republic of China seem favourites to top the gold medal’s tally - while the USA still maintains a lead in terms of most medals overall.

India have notched up multiple medals, but the widespread Indian contingent is aiming for more. There still remains the prospect of medals in hockey, as well as a few athletic events and wrestling.

Boxing

Lovlina Borgohain bagged India’s third medal at the Tokyo Olympics by taking home the bronze in the Women’s Welterweight Semi-finals on day 13. She succumbed to Turkish pugilist Busenaz Surmeneli, losing the bout 0-5 after failing to put much pressure throughout the fight.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnlocNede3Y

However, the 23-year-old Indian pugilist becomes only the second woman in history to win an Olympic medal in boxing after Mary Kom. Age is on Lovlina’s side, meaning she can come back to fight for silver or even gold in 2024!

Wrestling

India had multiple athletes competing in various wrestling events on Wednesday. Things started off in emphatic fashion, as Ravi Kumar Dahiya defeated Colombia’s Oscar Urbano in the Men’s 57KG freestyle 1/8 round. Dahiya dominated the Colombian wrestler throughout the fight, notching up technical points in both periods.

Dahiya did one better in the quarterfinals against Bulgarian wrestler Georgi Vangelov. The Indian wrestler continued his dominance and won again via technical superiority with a score of 14-4.

https://youtu.be/5iygKOmf0nI

He faced off against Kazakhstan's Nurislam Sanayev in a gruelling semi-finals. Ravi mounted an incredible turnaround, getting back from being 2-9 down to win the bout by pin fall. The wrestler has assured India of at least a silver medal and will compete in the 57Kgs final on Thursday.

Deepak Punia faced gold-medal favourite David Morris Taylor III and was overwhelmed in the semifinals. He lost the bout 10-0 by technical superiority. However, Punia still has a chance of winning the bronze medal , with the match to be held on August 5.

Young Indian wrestling sensation Anshu Malik, who had lost against Irina Kurachkina in the 1/8 final round, has found her way to the repechage round of her event. The event is scheduled for August 5, 7:30 AM IST.

Deepak Punia also followed in the footsteps of his teammate, picking up a dominant win over Nigerian wrestler Ekerekeme Agiomor in the 1/8 round of the men’s freestyle 86kg category. He picked up a dominant win via technical superiority with a score of 14-1.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nGI4-65rrs&pp=sAQA

However, Punia faced a daunting task against China’s Zushen Lin in the quarterfinals. But, the wrestler’s aggressive style paid off, as he won by a margin of 6-3 to move into the semi-finals.

Things didn’t fare off that well for Indian female wrestler Anshu Malik against Bulgarian wrestler Iryna Kurachkina in the 1/8 round of the women’s 57kg event. She fell to a disappointing 2-8 loss, failing to get the better of her opponent and was eliminated.

Athletics

https://youtu.be/Upqror7ZXGo

In the men’s javelin throw qualification, Indian athlete and World No.16 Neeraj Chopra had an amazing start and managed a 86.65m throw in his first attempt – storming into the finals. He actually finished in the top spot in qualification, with nobody else being able to match his throw.

However, Shivpal Singh couldn’t replicate his fellow thrower’s heroics. He finished in 12th place in Group B with a best throw of 76.40, failing to qualify for the finals.

Golf

In the Women’s Individual Stroke Play Round 1, Aditi Ashok and Diksha Dagar represented India. Ashok had an excellent Round 1, managing multiple birdies and finishing the round in second place with a total of 67.

However, for Dagar, things did not go well at all. She finished in 54th place with a total of 76 after a disappointing outing.

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