When it comes to remembering the heartbreak of the Paris Olympics, India can't forget the disqualification of wrestler Vinesh Phogat, who lost the gold medal bout due to exceeding the weight limit by just 100 grams. Although she had earned the silver medal in the women’s 50kg freestyle, she was unable to keep it because of the disqualification. Her appeal is now being reviewed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, and if fortune favors her, she might yet reclaim the silver medal.
The 22-year-old Indian shuttler made history in his Olympic debut by becoming the first man from the nation to reach the semi-finals. Unfortunately, he was defeated by Viktor Axelsen (20-22, 14-21) and later lost the bronze medal match to Lee Zii Jia (13-21, 16-21, 11-21).
Manu Bhaker, who won two medals for India—a bronze in the women's 10m air pistol and another in the mixed team event—also fell victim to the fourth-place curse. The 22-year-old narrowly missed a third medal, finishing just one point behind her Hungarian competitor in the 25m pistol shooting event.
Arjun Babuta, missed the bronze medal in the men's 10m air rifle event by just 1.4 points. The 25-year-old was really close to the podium but could only earn 208.4 points, finishing fourth.
Maheshwari Chauhan and Anant Jeet Singh Naruka, the mixed skeet team, elevated India's expectations for a medal in shooting. However, the "fourth-place curse" struck again, as they missed out on a medal by just one point, finishing with 43 points—one point less than the bronze medal-winning team from China.
The archery team carried hopes for a medal right up until the last moment. Amidst tough competition, the mixed team of Ankita Bhakat and Dhiraj Bommadevara reached the semi-finals. However, they fell short in the bronze medal match, losing to the USA's Brady Ellison and Casey Kaufhold.
Can't miss the loss of PV Sindhu, the badminton star who won medals at both Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020. However, in Paris, she was knocked out in the Round of 16 by He Bingjiao with scores of 19-21, 14-21.
India's sole hope for gold was pinned on the javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, who had made it at the Tokyo Olympics. However, this time, the curse of no gold was stronger. Chopra's throw of 89.45 meters (Silver medal) fell short against Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem, who set an Olympic record with a throw of 92.97 meters.
