The difference between the Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Olympics is of only one medal, but that is a bitter pill to swallow for India. The Paris Games, with six medals—five bronze and one silver—marked the third-best medal tally for the country after Tokyo and London. However, this achievement was accompanied by its own set of heartbreaks. With the 'curse of fourth place finish', and absence of gold, the 117-member contingent finished 71st in the standings. (Medal Tally|Schedule & Results| Full Coverage)
The Paris 2024 Olympics, which began on July 27, concluded on its fateful day—August 11, a Sunday. With 329 medal events across 32 sports, the Games were filled with endless drama, controversies, and ecstacy and sorrow in the city of love. Let’s turn the page and explore India’s journey, comparing it with Tokyo, where the country reached its highest-ever medal tally: seven medals, including one gold, two silver, and four bronze.
*Note: As of today, 13 medal events remain, but India's campaign concluded with Reetika Hooda's upset in the women's 76kg freestyle wrestling on Saturday. Therefore, the rankings might differ at the end of August 11, Sunday, 2024.
India Contingent At Paris Olympics 2024
India Medal Winners At Paris 2024 Olympics
Manu Bhaker's stellar performance at the Paris Olympics was a joyous surprise for India, as she clinched two medals, becoming the first Indian to do so in a single edition. Her achievements not only marked a historic first for female shooters in India but also ended a 12-year drought, with India securing three shooting medals in total, thanks to Swapnil Kusale and Sarabjot Singh.
Shooting - 3 Bronze
Manu Bhaker - Women's 10m air pistol
Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singht - Mixed 10m air pistol
Swapnil Kusale - Men's 50 metre rifle three position
Hockey - 1 Bronze
India Men's National Hockey Team
Athletics - 1 Silver
Neeraj Chopra - Men's Javelin Throw
Wrestling - 1 Bronze
Aman Sehrawat - Men's 57kg Freestyle Wrestling
One of the shocking point to be noted from the medal tally of the Games 2024 is that India finished 71st in the standings, eight places behind Pakistan, which ranked 62nd. Key difference? The gold medal. Arshad Nadeem’s gold in the javelin throw for Pakistan overshadowed India's six medals, as the absence of a gold left Neeraj Chopra's team lacking in comparison.
India Contingent At Tokyo Olympics 2020
Let’s take a walk down memory lane to the 2020 Tokyo Games, when India basked in its golden era after 12 years. PV Sindhu’s consecutive podium finishes, Mirabai Chanu’s brilliant silver in weightlifting and many unforgettable moments. Neeraj Chopra’s stunning gold in javelin finally broke the fourth-place curse, making those days feel like a golden chapter in India’s Olympic history with the best ever medal tally.
A total of 119 athletes took part in 65 medal events across 18 sports in the last Games. Below is the distribution:
Archery - 4; Athletics - 23; Badminton - 4; Boxing- 9; Equestrian - 1; Fencing-1; Field hockey - 32; Golf - 4; Gymnastics - 1; Judo - 1; Rowing - 2; Sailing - 4; Shooting -5; Swimming - 3; Table tennis - 4; Tennis - 3; Weightlifting -1; Wrestling - 7
India Medal Winners at Tokyo Olympics 2020
Wrestling - 2 Medals
Ravi Dahiya - Men's 57 kg Freestyle (Silver)
Bajrang Punia - Men's 65 kg Freestyle (Bronze)
Athletics - 1 Gold
Neeraj Chopra - Men's Javelin Throw
Boxing - 1 Bronze
Lovlina Borgohain - Women's Walterweight
Badminton - 1 Bronze
PV Sindhu - Badminton
Weightlifting - 1 Silver
Mirabai Chanu - Women's 49 Kg
Field Hockey - 1 Bronze
Men's National Team
Tokyo vs Paris: India's Tale Of Two Games
The one-word answer to where India went wrong in Paris and what was there in Tokyo that they missed time is: "nothing," or perhaps "everything." Or simply, a gold that could have elevated the nation’s ranking.
If we say "nothing," the story unfolds like this: India secured 6 medals, matching their second-best performance from London 2012 with four bronzes and two silvers. They also maintained their wrestling medal streak, thanks to Aman Sehrawat’s bronze in the men’s 57kg freestyle, continuing the legacy since Beijing 2008.
Weightlifting Loss:
However, if we consider "everything," the story is more poignant: India lost its weightlifting glory when Mirabai Chanu missed the podium by just 1 kilogram, lifting 199 kg (88kg snatch + 111kg clean and jerk).
Sindhu's Dream:
PV Sindhu’s dream of three consecutive podium finishes in badminton fell short as she, who had won silver in Rio and bronze in Tokyo, was eliminated in the round of 16 in Paris.
Boxing Disappointment:
In boxing, Lovlina Borgohain, who earned bronze at the Tokyo Olympics 2020, fell short this time against her long-time rival, the top-seeded Li Qian from the People's Republic of China, in the quarter-finals of the women’s 75kg event.
Goldman's Miss:
The absence of Neeraj Chopra’s gold, which had marked India’s historic first Olympic athletics gold in Tokyo 2020, left a void in the hearts of all India at Paris 2024 as he lost it to the hands of Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem. Indeed, many opportunities were missed.
The Hockey Sticks:
The hockey sticks that made the white ball fly into the net stayed true to their promise, with the men in blue putting their best foot forward, both in Tokyo and in Paris. However, the colour of the medal and the shape of the smile remained unchanged. Last time, India's women’s hockey team found themselves between a rock and a hard place. This time, they did not qualify for the Games. On the other hand, the men’s team, having secured bronze previously, repeated their feat by defeating Spain 2-1.
India's Fourth Place Curse: Tokyo And Paris Heartbreaks
The fourth-place curse, a shadow lingering since the days of legends like PT Usha and Milkha Singh, has once again haunted India—neither in Tokyo nor in Paris did it evade the nation’s grasp. This time, the sting is particularly sharp.
India's Near Medal Misses Of Tokyo Olympics:
In Tokyo 2020, India faced a near miss with Deepak Punia, who let a lead slip away in the final moments, ultimately losing the men’s 86kg freestyle wrestling bronze medal match 4-2 to San Marino’s Myles Amine.
In her second Olympic appearance at the Tokyo Games, Aditi Ashok held a top-three position across three rounds but slipped to fourth in the final round, missing the bronze by the narrowest of margins—a single stroke. At the Paris Games, she finished at T29.
The Indian women's hockey team’s dream was shattered as they lost the bronze medal match 4-3 to Great Britain, leaving the entire nation heartbroken.
India's Near Medal Misses Of Paris Olympics:
And in Paris, the same shadow loomed over every corner where Indian athletes competed—whether on the badminton courts, in the shooting arenas, boxing rings, or on the wrestling mats. The six medals that India earned could have been 12 only if:
1. Lakshya Sen fell short in the men’s singles badminton bronze medal match at the Paris 2024 Olympics, losing to Malaysia's Lee Zii Jia with scores of 13-21, 21-16, 21-11. Nevertheless, the sensational Sen still made an impressive record by becoming the first male shuttler from India to reach semi-finals at Olympics.
2. Mirabai Chanu could have been a medalist again, the first from India to win two medals in weightlifting but that one kilogram, took it away. Tokyo 2020 handed her the silver as she lifted 202 kg (87 kg in the snatch and 115 kg in the clean and jerk).
3. Anantjeet Singh Naruka and Maheshwari Chauhan came agonizingly close to the podium in the skeet mixed team shooting event at the Paris 2024 Olympics but were edged out by the People's Republic of China.
4. Manu Bhaker, the woman shooter, who broke records missed out on a hat-trick of medals as she missed out on a bronze in the women's 25m air pistol shooting final
5. In archery, India would have claimed the long-awaited medal but something about the curse snatched Dhiraj Bommadevara and Ankita Bhakat's podium finish in the mixed team archery event.
6. Arjun Babuta was just a whisker away from grabbing another medal in shooting. But, no. He ended up on the fourth spot in the men’s 10m air rifle final at the Paris 2024 Olympics with a total of 208.4 points.
In conclusion:
In terms of numbers, medals, rankings, and heartbreaks, Tokyo was a better experience than Paris. Three years ago, Indians did not face the heartache of Vinesh Phogat’s disqualification just before the women’s 50kg freestyle wrestling gold medal match, due to a margin of just 100 grams.
However, hope remains alive, as the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) verdict regarding Phogat's request for a joint silver medal is still pending. Read more about the Summer Games 2024 at Outlookindia.com.
