India did not send in the gymnasts to the Paris Olympics 2024. The nation has not provided many stars in this field except for Dipa Karmakar. The veteran gymnast recently retired from the sport. She made it into the history books as the first Indian woman gymnast to compete in the Olympics. The gymnasts finished fourth in the 2016 Rio Games. Then she retired earlier this month. Capping off a career that inspired awe for consistently performing.
In the highly difficult Produnova vault. The tiny 31-year-old from Tripura made headlines with her fourth-place result in the vault final at the 2016 Rio Games, losing an Olympic medal by only 0.15 points. Pranati, a Tokyo Olympian, earned bronze medals in the vault at the Asian Championships in 2019 and 2022. Dipa, from Agartala, is one of only five women in gymnastics history to have successfully done the Produnova.
It consists of two somersaults before landing and is known as the ‘vault of death’ due to the great danger of damage. Dipa believes that most of today’s gymnasts lack passion, and it is advised that they embrace the sport with zeal to flourish on the international stage. This is a huge backset for the country and the sport as well.
Dipa Karmakar slams Indian sports infrastructure
Is it the poor infrastructure that is leading to the lack of passion? Dipa stated, “There was junoon (passion) in Dipa, that is why. Same for Pranati. I can’t see this Junoon (passion) much in the current generation (of gymnasts). I feel they look for short-term, instant success. There was a problem between the SAI and the federation. For example, the selection criteria for the last Asian Games (2023) were known only after the actual trials.”
In India, there is no proper growth at the grassroots. Nobody talked about Dipa Karmakar before she became renowned in the Olympics. Following her achievement, she briefly rose to prominence before fading away over time. Since then, no gymnasts from India have competed in the global event. She would have done far better if the Indian government had given her greater backing.
