Olympics: Decoding India's medal haul in badminton
The 2024 Paris Olympics will get underway on July 26 with a high-voltage opening ceremony. A total of 184 countries will participate in the tourney with 329 gold medals being at stakes. Badminton is among the many sports to be played as several nations would want to enhance their medal tally. Here we look at India's Olympic medal haul in badminton.
Three medals in badminton
India's recent success at the Olympic Games can be credited to the rise of badminton in the nation. The Indian shuttlers have tasted glory in each of the last three editions. Notably, India didn't have an Olympic medal in badminton prior to the 2012 London Games. The country currently boasts three medals in this discipline, one silver, and two bronze.
Saina Nehwal opened the account
Saina Nehwal was the first shuttler to bring an Olympic medal to India. She clinched bronze in the women's singles event in 2012. Nehwal's campaign ended after she went down to the world champion Wang Yihan in the semi-final. Notably, the star athlete was dealing with viral fever at the start of the competition.
When Sindhu clinched the silver
Though Nehwal had a hard time in the 2016 Rio Olympics, PV Sindhu brought glory to India that year. She went a step ahead of Nehwal and clinched the silver medal (women's singles). The then 21-year-old Sindhu even won the opening set in the final against Carolina Marin but went down in the next two. She hence had to settle for a second-place finish.
Another medal for Sindhu
Sindhu made India proud in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics as well. The star shuttler, who was the only athlete to qualify for women's singles from India, cruised into the knockouts on the back of some brilliant performances. However, Sindhu went down to the then world No. 1 Tai Tzu-Ying in the semi-final round. She hence received the bronze medal this time.
