India has opened their medal account in the ongoing Paris Olympics 2024. The nation won bronze in the Women’s Singles 10m Air Pistol. On Tuesday the mixed team of Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh will be competing in the mixed doubles 10m Air Pistol against South Korea. The nation will be competing in the quarter-finals of the Men’s Single Sculls with Balraj Panwar, and have a chance to create history.
The rower has qualified for the last 8 of the multinational event. Panwar finished second in his repechage race, clocking a time of 7:12.41s. The top two finishers in each repechage race advance to the quarterfinals as Monaco’s Quentin Antognelli took first place with a time of 7:10.00s. He for a short time led the race but ultimately finished behind Antognelli. He had initially placed fourth in his heat on Saturday.
The Haryana-born rower has the chance of qualifying for the semi-final and earning a medal for the nation for the first time in a rowing event. Previously Arjun Lal Jat and Arvind Singh competed in the Tokyo event in the doubles event. They finished 11th overall. But Panwar might overcome that and earn the second medal for the country.
Balraj Panwar will overcome the pressure
Will there be a lot of pressure on Balraj Panwar? Yes, the pressure will be on the rower. He has a chance of writing his name on the history books for India. The Indian Army man earned his spot in the Paris 2024 contingent by winning a bronze medal at the Asian and Oceanian Rowing Olympic Qualification Regatta in Chungju, the Republic of Korea in April. He came fourth at the Asian Games in Hangzhou last year.
Panwar knows how to handle the pressure as he did in the Asian Games. Despite missing out on a medal at the very last moment in China. He would not like to do something similar here in Paris and disappoint the fans and the nation.
