GUWAHATI: The complete list of the Indian contingent for the Paris Olympics 2024 has been released, but only four athletes from the Northeast are included.
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In recent editions, the number of Indian athletes at the Olympic Summer Games has steadily increased. At Tokyo 2020, India sent its largest-ever contingent, comprising 124 athletes. The team achieved a record-breaking haul of seven medals, including Neeraj Chopra's historic gold in the men’s javelin throw.
The list for Paris 2024 includes ace sportsmen and women such as PV Sindhu, Neeraj Chopra, Gagan Narang, and Deepika Kumari. However, only four sportspersons from the Northeast will represent India at the Paris Olympics 2024.
Mirabai Chanu from Manipur will compete in Weightlifting, Women's 49kg, Lovlina Borgohain from Assam will compete in Boxing, Women's 75kg and Lalremsiami from Mizoram and Bichu Devi Kharibam from Manipur are in the Indian Women’s Hockey Team.
In Tokyo Olympics, eight sports personnel were selected from Northeast namely Sikkim’s Tarundeep Rai for Archery, Assam’s Lovlina Borgohain for Boxing, Manipur’s MC Mary Kom for Boxing, Mizoram’s Lalremsiami in Hockey, Manipur’s Sushila Likmabam in Judo, Shanglakpam Nilakant in Hockey, Saikhom Mirabai Chanu in Weightlifting and Sushila Chanu in Hockey.
Notably absent from the list are athletes like Jeremy Lalrinnunga, Bindyarani Devi, Nayanmoni Saikia, Hima Das, Shiva Thapa, Popi Hazarika, Tania Chowdhury, and Mridul Borgohain, who had previously competed in the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games and some had even won medals for the country.
A senior official from Sports and Youth Welfare Department said, “Some of Assam’s players couldn’t qualify for the Paris Olympics.”
On enquiring why, the state’s players aren’t able to qualify the official said that the department is doing their best to push them forward. “We have identified over 600 players during Khel Maharan who will be provided advanced training from our side. Rest is upon their effort.”
With several sporting infrastructure emerging across the state and the region, the question arises: why is there not enough representation from the Northeast in the Indian contingent?
