Paris 2024 – Bhartiyanews24x7

4Jul

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Politics

India Athletics Squad For Paris Olympics 2024: Neeraj Chopra Headlines 28-Member Contingent

India Athletics Squad For Paris Olympics 2024: Neeraj Chopra, India's star javelin thrower, headlines the 28-member athletics team that will be competing for Team India at the Paris Olympics 2024. The same was announced by the Athletics Federation Of India (AFI) on Thursday (July 4). Notabaly, Chopra had become the first Indian track and field athlete to win a medal at the Olympics and made it all the more sweet as he won the gold at the men's javelin throw event of Tokyo 2020 which happened in 2021. This time around, he will have company from his compatriot Kishore Jena. Even though Jeswin Aldrin has not been named yet in the list announced by the national federation, the long-jumper is expected to be included in the squad later. READ HERE | Neeraj Chop...

3Jul

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Sports

Why Lakshya Sen brought back two-time Olympic men’s doubles medallist Yoo Yong Sung to his coaching team

Sometime after the Indian Open in January, where he suffered his latest in a series of first-round exits, Lakshya Sen sat down for a chat with former All England champion and his mentor Prakash Padukone. Trying to get out of the slump in form dating back to the backend of 2023, Lakshya’s chances of going to Paris for the Olympics were hanging by the proverbial thread. Padukone asked then, “Are you just looking for a place in the Olympics, or are you trying to have a realistic chance of winning a medal?” Lakshya responded: “I want to win a medal. So Prakash sir said, ‘then first you have to show us that you can win a tournament. You don’t have to go everywhere and try to reach the quarterfinals’. Even though I didn’t win a tournament in Europe, I managed to pull off two really good weeks...

30Jun

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Sports

PV Sindhu has been grinding it out leading to the Olympics, but is it a good thing?

Maybe none of the past matters, because it is the Olympics and because it is PV Sindhu at the Games. Perhaps, the injuries-healing status of each player in these last 27 days will ultimately decide if she can sneak in a very difficult third Olympic medal in women’s singles. But one of Sindhu’s most frustrating statistics of 2024 also reveals that she has literally poured in effort in terms of the highest court duration amongst all players, throwing in everything in lead-up competitions in order to sort out her slowly fading elite game.The meticulous data site Statminton recently released figures of average court-times spent by the world’s top players. And unsurprisingly, albeit a tad sighingly, Sindhu found herself on the top having averaged 56.7 minutes over 9 tournaments. An Se-young,...

27Jun

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Sports

Fight with family, financial struggles and injuries: Quartermiler Kiran Pahal overcomes hurdles to qualify for Paris Olympics

There was almost a sense of disbelief on Kiran Pahal’s face as her 400m timing flashed on the big screen at the Tau Lal Devi Stadium, Panchkula, where the Interstate Athletics Meet is underway. Kiran’s reaction was fully justified. The Haryana athlete, competing in her first competition after a break of over a year, clocked a solid 50.92s – the second-best quarter-mile run ever by an Indian after Hima Das’s 50.79s. “I was nervous since I was competing after a long break but a good performance in the heats (52.33s) definitely eased my nerves a bit. I wasn’t really expecting to clock such a good time. It’s a surprise for me as well. But I am really happy to earn a spot for Paris,” said Kiran, whose previous best was 51.84s. Kiran was head and shoulders above the rest, finishing almost thr...

27Jun

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Sports

Paris Olympics: Mixed Relay team hoping against hope at Interstate Athletics Meet

It’s literally a race against time for the country’s elite track and field athletes who are still hoping to make the cut for the Paris Olympics. The Interstate Athletics Meet, which kicks off on Wednesday in Panchkula, Haryana, will be the last major competition for athletes to attempt to make the cut for the mega event before the qualification cycle closes at the end of this month. As things stand, 18 athletes have achieved the direct qualification marks from various events including the relay and race walk and 16 will finally board the flight to Paris. The tally is expected to reach at least 31 considering the current ranking placement.This Interstate meet, being a B-level tournament, gives an opportunity for those on the fence to accumulate some valuable ranking points before this mo...

25Jun

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Sports

India’s trip to Paris Olympics to cost Rs 33.68 crore | More sports News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Indian contingent’s trip to the Paris Olympics will cost the exchequer Rs 33.68 crore – more than double of what was spent from the govt’s coffers during the Tokyo Games in 2021. The Games will run from July 26 to August 11.TOI has learnt that the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has worked out a detailed budget estimate for the Paris Games and the amount to be spent on the travel, accommodation, equipment and logistics needs of athletes, support staff and the government and IOA delegates would be around Rs 33 crore. For Tokyo, the government had spent Rs 13.13 crore.The budget has been prepared considering the size of India’s contingent, which will have 195 members. A total of Rs 14 crore has been earmarked for athlete-related activities, including reward money for sportsper...

19Jun

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Sports

Neeraj Chopra wins at Paavo Nurmi Games: Finland meet was an important stopover en route Paris, and Neeraj does enough

Neeraj Chopra’s hallmark celebration involves him waiting till the javelin enters its downward path and then turning around to face the fans and raising his arms and exulting. A no-look statement even before the javelin hits the green patch. This happens when he inherently knows it’s a big throw. His competitors often have to play catch up once this happens. On a cool evening in Turku, Chopra’s arms went up in the air once he released the javelin in the third round. He didn’t turn around this time, but followed the 800 gram spear till it landed. With 85.97 metres, Neeraj took back the lead from Finland’s Oliver Helander, one of the three homeboys at the Paavo Nurmi Games. Returning to competition after skipping the Ostrava Golden Spike event because of an adductor muscle niggle (not an ...

18Jun

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Sports

Neeraj Chopra claims gold at Paavo Nurmi Games | More sports News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: India's Olympic and world champion javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra on Tuesday secured his maiden gold medal at the Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku, Finland upon his return to competition after a month-long break due to a minor injury.The 26-year-old, who had won a silver at the same event in 2022, produced a winning throw of 85.97m on his third attempt. Neeraj's performance kept him in the lead for most of the competition. The event also featured 19-year-old German talent Max Dehning, the youngest member of the 90m club.Local favorite Toni Keranen won the silver medal with a best throw of 84.19m. Last year's gold medalist, Oliver Helander, finished third with a throw of 83.96m.Chopra entered this competition after securing second place in the Doha Diamond League and a gold medal at ...

18Jun

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Sports

Sleep advisor, sleeping pods & kits: India’s Plan Zzzz for its Paris dreams

Neeraj Chopra had to spend most nights at the Olympic village tossing and turning in bed before his gold medal winning effort at the Tokyo Games. Jet lag, a late evening visit by anti-doping sleuths and anxiety were reasons he couldn’t even catch forty winks. The javelin thrower wasn’t alone in dealing with this ordeal. Invariably, at the heart of every success or failure story at the world’s grandest sporting spectacle is a sleepless Olympian.And so, at the July 26 to August 11 Paris Olympics, the Indian contingent will be accompanied by an expert who will ensure that the athletes aren’t sleep-deprived. Europe’s long daylight hours in July-August, the Olympics months, too can play tricks with the minds of those not used to the sun rising as early as 4 am and setting as late as 11 pm. F...

18Jun

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Sports

Paavo Nurmi Games: Fitness test for Neeraj Chopra with German wonderkid Max Dehning in fray

“It will be fun to compete with him,” Olympic and World Champion Neeraj Chopra had said when asked about his assessment of young German Max Dehning in April.Dehning was 19-years-old in February when he became the youngest to throw 90 metres in Halle. Dehning hit the headlines, the history-maker’s unexpected upswing in distance became a talking point too. From a best of 79.13 metres, Dehning had surged to 90.20m. The rise of a new German challenger months before the Olympics was an exciting prospect. On Tuesday evening, Neeraj and Dehning will be among the eight men at the Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku, Finland. He has a 90-metre throw against his name, but Dehning hasn’t entered the big league yet. Since his big throw, he has orbited between the 80-82 metre mark. A 12th-place finish in the...

17Jun

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Sports

Sumit Nagal capitalises on clay and consistency to be on Olympic cusp, but needs to step up to get to next level

During a year which saw Sumit Nagal, India’s top-ranked singles tennis player, surge up the rankings, make the main draws of Grand Slams and sustain the momentum by staying relatively fit, his friend and part-time coach Somdev Devvarman feels the younger player may go past him as far as a personal milestone is concerned. “Rankings are timing-based. A lot of it is luck and how often you can keep yourself injury-free. I actually thought Sumit was ready to overtake my (highest) ranking this year, but after Monte Carlo (in April), he had to pull out of a few events again and got unlucky,” Devvarman told The Indian Express last month. After two remarkable weeks on the clay courts of Germany and Italy, Nagal is not too far away from that feat. On Monday, the 27-year-old jumped six spots in th...

13Jun

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Sports

Lionel Messi to miss Olympics but leaves door open for 2026 World Cup | Football News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Eight-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi has revealed in an ESPN interview that he will not pursue a second Olympic gold medal with Argentina in Paris this summer. The Inter Miami forward explained his decision, stating, "I spoke with (Argentinian Olympic coach Javier) Mascherano, and we immediately agreed on the situation.""It's a difficult moment, because there's the Copa America, and that would mean two or three consecutive months away from my club."At my age, I don't want to play everything and I need to make the right choices," added the former Barcelona star who was a member of Argentina's 2008 Olympic gold medal winning team.The Copa America, which will take place from June 20 to July 14 in the United States, will see Messi representing the defending champions Argent...

10Jun

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Sports

Paris Olympics: India’s hockey team lost half of its matches in Europe but there’s no reason to panic

Few things in Indian sport are as secretly guarded these days as the Paris preparation of the hockey team. Back in SAI Bangalore, their Olympics training base, cameras are prohibited during training, the entry of outsiders is regulated and players are careful what they reveal – more importantly, what they don’t.The hush-hush nature of Craig Fulton’s preparations for next month’s Games extended to London. Last Saturday, when asked in a mid-game interview against Germany why he hadn’t used one of his substitutes, Jarmanpreet Singh, for the entire first half – a rarity in hockey given the luxury of rolling subs – Fulton smiled and replied: “Top secret”. By all accounts, it is evident that the chief coach is holding a few cards close to his chest, hoping to reveal them only in Paris. Going ...

6Jun

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Sports

Indonesia Open: How Lakshya Sen’s well-honed defence came to the fore in quarterfinal win against world No 12 Nishimoto

Tasked with keeping his ward Lakshya Sen’s feet on the ground even as the Indonesian fans went hysterical over some of his stunning reflex shots, coach Vimal Kumar scythes the hype. “It’s not his trademark shot or anything,” he says, dismissing the spectacular body defense stroke that Sen hit against Kenta Nishimoto on 11-8 in the second set. It was the shot that deflated the Japanese completely as he went down 21-9, 21-15 in the pre-quarterfinals of the Indonesia Open Super 1000 in Jakarta.Vimal, the hard taskmaster, was quick to point out that the “real test” was in Friday’s quarters against Anders Antonsen. Father and co-coach DK Sen would gush and call it one of those things that Sen gets right when he’s in the flow. Both knew however that the gritty Nishimoto’s back was broken afte...