Following the Paris Olympics 2024, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday appreciated the efforts of the Indian contingent that participated in various sports representing the tricolour, and said the country was proud of them.
The Paris Olympics will end on Sunday with the closing ceremony.
PM Modi wrote in X: “As the Paris Olympics draw to a close, I appreciate the efforts of the entire Indian contingent during the games. All the athletes gave their best and every Indian is proud of them. We wish our sporting heroes all the best for their upcoming endeavours.”
Like Paris #Olympic In conclusion, I appreciate the efforts of the entire Indian contingent during the match. All the athletes gave their best and every Indian is proud of them. We wish our sporting heroes all the best for their upcoming endeavours.
-Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 11, 2024
A contingent of 117 Indian athletes are in search of medals and sporting glory at this mega event.
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India won a total of six medals at the mega event, including one silver and five bronze, according to Olympics.com.
Manu Bhaker won India's first medal at the Games, winning bronze and becoming the first Indian woman to win a medal in Olympic shooting. He then created history by becoming the first Indian to win two medals in a single Olympics, after winning bronze in the 10m air pistol mixed team event with Sarabjot Singh. The medal he won with Sarabjot was also his country's first team medal in shooting.
Swapnil Kusale contributed his third medal in shooting, marking India's highest medal haul in the sport at a single Olympics.
The Indian men's hockey team repeated their success at Tokyo 2020 by winning bronze in Paris. Neeraj Chopra further cemented his Olympic legacy by winning silver in the javelin throw and becoming India's most decorated individual Olympian.
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Aman Sehrawat added to his medal tally, becoming the youngest Indian Olympic medallist with a bronze in wrestling.
Despite this, India faces a major disappointment at Paris 2024. The country narrowly missed out on six potential medals, with its athletes finishing only fourth in their sport, including Lakshya Sen, Mirabai Chanu and Manu Bhaker, who came close to securing a third medal.
Vinesh Phogat's disqualification just before the historic final also contributed to the country's woes.
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Indian athletes participated in 69 medal events across 16 sports including archery, athletics, badminton, boxing, equestrian, golf, hockey, judo, rowing, sailing, shooting, swimming, table tennis and tennis.
Among the returning Olympic medallists from the Indian contingent are Neeraj Chopra, badminton star PV Sindhu, weightlifter Mirabai Chanu, boxer Lovlina Borgohain and some members of the Indian men's hockey team led by Harmanpreet Singh.
India has won a total of 41 Olympic medals to date, starting with Norman Pritchard's two silver medals at the 1900 Paris Olympics. KD Jadhav won India's first individual medal as an independent nation with a bronze in wrestling at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. Karnam Malleswari made history as the first Indian woman to win an Olympic medal with a bronze in weightlifting at Sydney in 2000.
Abhinav Bindra broke a new record by becoming the first Indian to win an individual Olympic gold medal with his victory in the shot put at Beijing 2008. The feat was unmatched until Neeraj Chopra won the javelin throw gold at Tokyo 2020.
India's most successful sport is men's hockey, which won 13 medals, including eight golds. Wrestling followed with eight medals. India's most impressive Olympic feat came at Tokyo 2020, where the country won a total of seven medals, including one gold.
