Paris Olympics 2024: Who are the medal contenders for India on Day 1, July 27?

Published at :July 27, 2024 at 2:05 AM

Modified at :July 27, 2024 at 2:05 AM

(Courtesy : @OfficialNRAI/Twitter)

Indian athletes will hope to start the Paris Olympics 2024 with a podium finish.

After an impressive opening ceremony at the Paris Olympics 2024, it is all down to action on the ground, and the medals will be up for grabs from day one of the summer games. It is no different for team India as many athletes will put all their hard work into action to win a historic medal for the nation.

Over the past 10 years, India’s performance at the Olympics has been meteoric, with an increase in both medals and competitors.

India fielded its highest delegation at the Tokyo Olympics in 2020, fielding 124 participants for the quadrennial competition. It was their best performance yet, taking home seven medals, including the first-ever individual gold in track and field events.

Also Read: A look at India’s medal winners at Tokyo Olympics 2020

At Paris Olympics 2024, India has fielded 117 athletes in 16 sports disciplines. The target is to surpass the Tokyo record and achieve a double-digit medal tally for the first time.

The expectations are high from the athletes to exceed the Tokyo tally. On the first day, India’s shooting contingent the biggest ever in their history will be in action with the 10m Air Rifle mixed team and 10m Air pistol men’s and women’s event. The focus will also be on other athletes as the fans will get to witness action in Badminton, Boxing, Table Tennis, Tennis, and Hockey.

While many are in action, let’s look at the top medal contenders for India on Day 1 (July 27) of Paris Olympics 2024.

10m Air Rifle Mixed Team Event – Ramita Jindal/Arjun Babuta and Elavenil Valarivan/Sandeep Singh

India will be represented by two mixed team pairs in the 10m Air Rifle event. The 2023 World Cup gold medallist Elavenil Valarivan will be teaming up with Sandeep Singh, who impressed many in the selection trials leading up to the Paris Olympics 2024.

Sandeep’s selection did raise a few eyebrows over the likes of former world champion Rudrankksh Patil, and Tokyo Olympian Divyansh Singh Panwar.

But Sandeep’s form during the selection trials proved his mettle as he topped it with scores of 634.4, 632.6, 631.6, and 628.3 out of the possible 654.

Also Read: Top five medal prospects for India in shooting at Paris Olympics 2024

Being a Naib Subedar in the Indian army, Sandeep is confident of improving these scores which could help India have a shot at the medal. There is another Indian pair who will be aiming for the podium.

The pair of Asian Games twin medalist Ramita Jindal and Olympic quota winner Arjun Babuta will be another duo that will have their eyes on the Olympic medal. Ramita played a key role in the women’s team bagging silver in the 2023 Asian Games.

Her precision was a hallmark as she kept teasing the perfect 10.9 mark. If she can replicate it along with Arjun Babuta who won a silver in the 2023 Asian Shooting Championships, then we could see the Indian flag during the medal ceremony at Paris Olympics 2024.

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Paris Olympics 2024: Who are the medal contenders for India on Day 1, July 27?

Indian athletes will hope to start the Paris Olympics 2024 with a podium finish.

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10m Air Rifle Mixed Team Event – Ramita Jindal/Arjun Babuta and Elavenil Valarivan/Sandeep Singh