India’s Achievements at Paris Olympics: Manu Bhaker and Neeraj Chopra Make History

India’s participation at the Paris Olympics 2024 concluded with six accolades, a count one shy of the previous total from Tokyo 2020. Nevertheless, it marks India’s third most successful performance at the Summer Games following Tokyo 2020 and London 2012. Archery, track and field, badminton, boxing, horseback riding, golf, hockey, judo, rowing, sailing, shooting, swimming, wrestling, ping pong, and tennis are among the 16 disciplines in which Indian athletes competed at the prestigious event. Track and field boasted the largest contingent with a team of 29 members. In shooting, India fielded its most extensive group ever, consisting of 21 marksmen.

While securing medals was the primary goal, Indian athletes also established new benchmarks at the Games.

Below is a comprehensive list of all Indian achievements at the Paris 2024 Olympics thus far.

India’s accomplishments at the Paris Olympics:

1. Neeraj Chopra adds to his Tokyo 2020 triumph

Neeraj Chopra delivered his second-best performance in javelin throwing at Paris 2024 with a toss of 89.45m but was surpassed for the gold by Arshad Nadeem, who set a new Olympic record of 92.97m.

Still, clinching an Olympic silver medal was a notable achievement, especially considering it was only India’s second athletics medal at the Summer Games – both secured by Neeraj.

Chopra became the fifth Indian athlete to win two Olympic medals after adding a silver to his Tokyo 2020 gold medal. Norman Pritchard, Sushil Kumar, PV Sindhu, and Manu Bhaker are the other double Olympic medalists from India.

2. Manu Bhaker becomes the first Indian woman to claim a shooting medal at the Olympics

Manu Bhaker secured the bronze in the women’s 10m air pistol event at Paris 2024 on July 28 and etched her name in history as the first Indian woman to capture an Olympic shooting medal.

A day prior, Manu Bhaker surged into the final of the women’s 10m air pistol, becoming the first Indian woman since Athens 2004 to qualify for the Olympic finals in shooting.

3. Manu Bhaker-Sarabjot Singh secure India’s inaugural shooting team honor at the Olympics

Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh became the first Indian shooting duo to nab an Olympic medal in shooting at Paris 2024. Overall, it marked India’s sixth Olympic medal in shooting.

The Indian shooting pair defeated Oh Ye Jin and Wonho Lee of the Republic of Korea 16-10 in the bronze medal showdown. Oh Ye Jin had claimed the gold medal in the women’s 10m air pistol event just days before the match.

Manu Bhaker becomes the premier athlete from independent India to clinch two medals at a single Games

A podium finish in the individual 10m air pistol event and the 10m air pistol mixed team event made Manu Bhaker the first athlete from independent India to secure two medals in one edition of the Olympics.

Norman Pritchard, with silver medals in the men’s 200m and men’s 200m hurdles at Paris 1900, was the inaugural athlete to clinch two medals at a single Olympics for India.

4. India’s most successful medal haul in a single sport at the Olympics

Swapnil Kusale seized the bronze medal in the men’s 50m rifle 3 positions on August 1, elevating India’s medal count in shooting at Paris 2024 to three. India had never before secured three medals in a single sport at any edition of the Games. The prior best was two in shooting at the London 2012 Olympics. This also marked India’s first-ever Olympic shooting medal in the 50m rifle 3 positions.

5. India secures back-to-back Olympic medals in hockey after 52 years

The Indian men’s hockey squad overcame a deficit to defeat Spain 2-1 and clinch the bronze medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics. India, also the bronze medalists in hockey at Tokyo, secured consecutive Olympic medals in hockey for the first time in 52 years, since Munich 1972.

The triumph at the Yves-du-Manoir Stadium also extended India’s record to 13 medals in hockey at the Olympics.

With 10 goals, Harmanpreet Singh emerged as India’s top scorer at Paris 2024 while PR Sreejesh made critical saves throughout the competition before retiring from his international career with a bronze medal.

India triumphs over Australia in Olympic hockey for the first time since Munich 1972

The Indian men’s hockey team, led by skipper Harmanpreet Singh’s double, outplayed Tokyo 2020 silver medalists Australia 3-2 in a group stage match at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

This marked India’s initial victory against Australia in hockey at the Olympics since Munich 1972. Following that, the two teams clashed seven times, with India losing five of those encounters before their triumph in Paris. The win also propelled India to a second-place finish in their group.

6. India’s finest performance in archery at the Olympics

Dhiraj Bommadevara and Ankita Bhakat secured fourth place in the mixed team event, marking India’s most impressive showing in archery at the Olympics.

In the bronze medal matchup against the USA’s Brady Ellison and Casey Kaufhold, Bommadevara and Bhakat succumbed 6-2 and narrowly missed out on a historic podium finish.

India reached the bronze medal match after falling to South Korea 6-2 in the semifinals. The Indian mixed team bested Spain’s Pablo Gonzalez and Elia Canales 5-3 in the quarterfinals following a 5-1 victory over Indonesia in the round of 16. It was the first instance of Indian archery advancing to the semifinals in any event at the Games.

7. Lakshya Sen pioneers Indian men in Olympic badminton

Lakshya Sen became the first Indian badminton player to reach the semifinals in a men’s badminton event at the Olympics. Competing in the men’s singles, he not only topped his group by defeating the likes of Jonatan Christie of Indonesia, but also overcame compatriot HS Prannoy in the round of 16 and then upset Chou Tien-chen in the quarterfinals.

The Indian shuttler fell to defending champion Viktor Axelsen of Denmark in the semifinals and subsequently lost to Lee Zii Jia of Malaysia in the bronze medal match.

8. Manika Batra makes history as the first Indian table tennis player to reach the pre-quarterfinals, followed by Sreeja Akula

Manika Batra, seeded 18th in the women’s singles event, became the first Indian table tennis player to advance to the pre-quarterfinals of the Olympic Games at Paris 2024 on July 29.

She commenced her campaign with a 4-1 victory over world No. 103 Anna Hursey of Great Britain in the round of 64. She then progressed to the pre-quarterfinals after upsetting France’s Prithika Pavade in the round of 32.

Manika’s journey concluded after a 4-1 defeat to eighth-seeded Japanese player Miu Hirano in the pre-quarterfinals. At Tokyo 2020, Manika Batra reached the round of 32.

Olympic debutant Sreeja Akula joined Manika in the round of 16 on July 30 with a 4-0 win over Sweden’s Christina Kallberg of Sweden in the round of 64 and a 4-2 win over Singapore’s Zeng Jian in the round of 32. She succumbed to Tokyo 2020 silver medalist Sun Yingsha of China in the round of 16 on her 26th birthday.