Dipa Karmakar drops from India's Asian Games 2023 squad despite being at the top of the qualification stage

India's star gymnast Dipa Karmakar has been dropped from the Asian Games 2023 squad despite being at the top of the qualification stage. According to the report, her name was dropped for not fulfilling all the criteria of the qualifying round. Dipa applied to relax the rules and send her to Asiad.

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Dipa has just returned from exile for 21 months. The Agartala girl, who became the first Indian gymnast to participate in the Rio Olympics, secured a berth in the Asian Games 2023 by topping the list with a total of 47.05 points at the end of the two-day qualification phase. But Dipa's participation in the Asiad is now in the face of uncertainty. The list of gymnastics team has already been sent by the IOA to the Sports Ministry. The list is likely to be approved by the Sports Ministry by Tuesday. Pranati Nayak and Pranati Das's name is there, but Dipa's name is not in this list.

It is mandatory to be ranked in the top eight in the last 12 months to participate in the Asian Games 2023 in individual events. The Sports Ministry does not allow disabled athletes to participate in the Asiad unless there is an exception to the rule. But the list that was published on July 15 had Dipa's name. Dipa applied to relax the rules and give her a chance.

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Earlier, the country's number one gymnast suddenly got involved in a doping controversy. She had to go to exile on the charge of taking prohibited drugs in her body. After overcoming this exile, Dipa has returned to her self-esteem. In the trials held in Bhubaneswar on July 11-12, Dipa had achieved the first place. In the list shared with the Asian Games 2023 organisers, Dipa's name figured in six events - all-round, balance beam, floor exercise, uneven bars, vault and team.

The Bengali female gymnast narrowly missed out a medal at the Rio Olympics. But her Produnova vault made everyone stand out.