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Indian Debutants to watch out for in Paris Olympics 2024

Nikhat Zareen appears to be standing at the forefront of the list of debutants in Paris 2024. let's take a look at seven promising Indians making their Olympics debut in Paris.

Jul 12, 2024, 4:18 PM5 min read

Indian Debutants to watch out for in Paris Olympics 2024

The Paris Olympics 2024 will begin on July 26 in Paris, the capital of France, in which more than 100 Indian athletes will show their mettle to reach the podium of the world's biggest sports stage.

This time Indian athletes will have a golden opportunity to destroy all the old records. The last Tokyo Olympics has been the most successful for India. But this time India has full hope of getting at least 10 medals. If this happens, it will be the first time in Olympic history that India will get double-figure medals.

Nikhat Zareen appears to be standing at the forefront of the list of debutants in Paris 2024. let's take a look at seven promising Indians making their Olympic debut in Paris.

Also Read: Paris Olympics 2024: PUMA India announces its partnership with IOA as official footwear partner

Debutants to watch out for in Paris 2024

7. Jyothi Yarraji

Debutants to watch out for in Paris 2024

24-year-old hurdles sprinter Jyothi Yarraji has won a series of medals leading up to Paris 2024, with golds in the Asian Athletic and Asian Indoor Athletic Championships. Yarraji secured quota through the world rankings route. Though the women’s 100m hurdles event has been part of the Summer Games since 1972, this will be the first time an Indian athlete is present on the start list.

The hurdler from Andhra Pradesh could have secured automatic entry to Paris if not for an injury to her lead leg that she suffered at the Monet Grand Prix in Finland in May. She clocked 12.78 seconds in Finland, missing the qualification mark by only 0.01 seconds.

6. Parul Chaudhary

World Athletics Championship 2023: Neeraj Chopra wins historic gold, Parul Chaudhary breaks national record to qualify for Paris Olympics

At the Paris Olympics 2024, Parul Chaudhary will participate not only in the women’s 3000m steeplechase but also in the 5000m event. She qualified for the Olympics by breaching the Olympic qualification mark and in the latter through the Road to Paris World Rankings. Chaudhary shot into the limelight with a gold in the 5000m and silver in the 3000m steeplechase events of the Hangzhou Asian Games last year. The 28-year-old is the first Indian to clock less than nine minutes in the 3000m women’s steeplechase.

Also Read: India's schedule in Paris Olympics 2024 by sports

5. Sreeja Akula

Debutants to watch out for in Paris 2024

Sreeja Akula, who played an important role in helping India obtain quotas for the team event at the Paris 2024 Summer Games, is set to make her Olympic debut in both team and individual events. In 2022, Sreeja teamed up with Sharath Kamal to win the mixed doubles gold in her first-ever Commonwealth Games appearance in Birmingham.

Sreeja also created history in Lagos by becoming the first Indian table tennis player to win a WTT Contender singles title. The 25-year-old Indian table tennis player hopes to carry the momentum and create a few upsets in Paris.

4. Lakshya Sen

Debutants to watch out for in Paris 2024

Lakshya Sen, the 'new star of Indian badminton' secured his spot at the Olympics by finishing 13th in the Paris 2024 Olympic Qualification Rankings (OQR) with 64021 points. He also ensured that India would have two men’s singles player representatives at the Olympics for the first time since 2004.

Lakshya has immense potential for the upcoming Paris 2024. He recently made a comeback with two consecutive semi-final finishes in the BWF European World Tour and French Open Super 750. He won three deciders at the French Open and All England Opens and two in two consecutive weeks which shows his sheer Potential, and determination to perform well on the big stage.

Also Read: Paris Olympics 2024: Gagan Narang to be India's Chef-de-Mission while PV Sindhu and Sharath Kamal will be India's flagbearers

3. Anshu Malik

Debutants to watch out for in Paris 2024

Indian wrestler Anshu Malik is a strong medal contender at the Paris Olympics. Anshu had won a silver medal at the recent Ranking Series event in Budapest in the women's 57kg, losing the final to China's Kexin Hong. The 22-year-old Anshu had qualified for Paris 2024 by winning a gold medal at the Asian Olympic Qualifier in April. At the age of 18, Malik qualified for the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, losing to the eventual silver medallist, Iryna Kurachkina, while missing out on a medal in the repechage round.

2. Kishore Jena

Debutants to watch out for in Paris 2024

Neeraj Chopra may be India's big hope in javelin but don't count out Kishore Jena, who followed up Chopra's gold at the 2022 Asian Games with a silver of his own. Jena got his ticket to the Paris Olympics via direct entry, as the qualifying cutoff is 85.50 m. Jena clinched the qualification with an 86.77-meter throw at the Hangzhou Asian Games last year.

During that event, he marked 87.54 m, just behind Neeraj Chopra’s mark of 89.94 m at the Stockholm Diamond League in June 2022. Jena believes that the Paris 2024 Olympics are a time for a turnaround. His entire focus is on Paris rather than future plans and that's why he could be a medal contender for sure.

Also Read: Paris Olympics 2024: Indian athletes who qualified for the Paris 2024

1. Nikhat Zareen

Debutants to watch out for in Paris 2024

After clinching bronze at the 2023 Asian Games and gold at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, boxer Nikhat Zareen is one of India's brightest medal prospects at Paris 2024. Zareen is only the second Indian woman to win more than one world title in the history of the competition.

She joined none other than the legendary MC Mary Kom to have multiple boxing world titles. Among her memorable performances in her boxing career, came her win over three-time European Championships medallist Ukraine's Tetiana Kob which came at the  Strandja Memorial Boxing Tournament in 2022. No surprise that her medals tally is expected to grow and an Olympic medal is what 1.4 billion are expecting from her at the Paris Olympics 2024.

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Taiwan Athletics Open 2025: Jyothi Yarraji wins 100m hurdles gold

Star Indian athlete Jyothi Yarraji made India proud on the opening day of the Taiwan Athletics Open 2025, clinching a gold medal at the 100m hurdles event.

Jun 7, 2025, 12:43 PM2 min read

Taiwan Athletics Open 2025: Jyothi Yarraji wins 100m hurdles gold

India's star athlete Jyoti Yarraji won the women’s 100m hurdles event with a timing of 12.99s in the opening day of the Taiwan Athletics Open 2025 on Saturday. The Indian hurdler relied on a desperate final push to claim a win, after going into the final hurdle trailing at second. This is India's fourth medal on the first day of the competition.

The 25-year-old Jyothi Yarraji had previously won gold at the Asian Championships in South Korea on 29 May with a time of 12.96 seconds. Her national record stands at 12.78 seconds.

Also Read: Paris Diamond League 2025: Neeraj Chopra set to return to Paris for his second Diamond League meet

Tejas Shirse secured gold

Tejas Shirse, also a national record holder, secured gold in the men’s 110m hurdles, clocking 13.52 seconds – the second-fastest time of his career. Local athletes Hsieh Yuan-kai (13.72 seconds) and Kuei-Ru Chen (13.75 seconds) took silver and bronze, respectively. Shirse’s national record is 13.41 seconds.

Abdulla Aboobacker and Pooja also won gold medals in their respective events: the men’s triple jump and the women’s 1500m. Aboobacker achieved a distance of 16.21m, falling short of his personal best of 17.19m. Pooja, who won silver at the Asian Championships in South Korea last month, finished in 4 minutes 11.63 seconds. Her personal best is 4:09.52, set in 2023.

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Watch: Jyothi Yarraji wins gold in 100m hurdles in Taiwan Athletics Open 2025 with a stunning final push

Watch how Indian athlete Jyothi Yarraji won gold in 100m hurdles in the Taiwan Athletics Open 2025 with a stunning final push.

Jun 7, 2025, 11:42 AM1 min read

Watch how Indian athlete Jyothi Yarraji won gold in 100m hurdles in the Taiwan Athletics Open 2025 with a stunning final push.

The Indian star athlete clocked 12.99s to win the gold.  Till the 7th hurdle, she was behind, but in the last 20m, she won the race with great acceleration.  

The 25-year-old national record holder had won the Gold medal in the Asian Athletics Championship 2025, a few weeks ago. 

Indian athletes claimed a total of four gold medals on the opening day of the Taiwan Open on Saturday. Pooja won the gold medal in Women's 1500m. Abdulla Aboobacker clinched the gold medal in men’s triple jump, with a leap of 16.21m. 

Meanwhile, alongside Jyothi, Tejas Shirse also won the gold in Men's 100m hurdles to make it double glory for the Indian 100m hurdle team. 

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Every Neeraj Chopra records you should know

Wherever Neeraj Chopra goes, he does not return empty-handed. So, it's time we take a look at every Neeraj Chopra records that he has made in his tremendous career so far.

May 18, 2025, 10:23 AM5 min read

Every Neeraj Chopra records you should know

Wherever Neeraj Chopra goes, he does not return empty-handed. This series started in 2016 when this rising star made a record for the first time at the Under-20 World Athletics Championships. From that day itself, we got a glimpse of the future to come, in which many records were to be made and broken one after the other.

On Friday night of 16 May, Neeraj maintained the same trend in Doha Diamond League 2025 and got his name registered in history, becoming the first Indian to breach the 90m mark in the sport. So, it's time we take a look at every Neeraj Chopra records that he has made in his tremendous career so far.

Also Read: Neeraj Chopra’s best throws: Here are all the top throws by javelin ace Neeraj Chopra

Every Neeraj Chopra records you should know

Every Neeraj Chopra records you should know

  • First Indian to breach the 90m mark: Neeraj Chopra’s best throw is 90.23m, achieved at the Doha Diamond League on May 16, 2025. The mark stands as the men’s national record in India and Neeraj Chopra’s personal best. It was the first time an Indian had breached the 90m-mark in the javelin.
  • First Indian to win Olympic medal in athletics: At the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, Neeraj Chopra produced a historic performance in the men's javelin throw event. Neeraj won the gold medal in the final with a throw of 87.58m, giving India its first Olympic medal in athletics. With this win, Neeraj Chopra also became the first Indian athlete to win a gold medal in a track and field event at the Olympics.
  • First Indian to win silver at World Athletics Championships: Star Indian javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra won a historic silver medal at the World Athletics Championships in Oregon. He recorded a throw of 88.13m in his fourth attempt to claim the second spot. Chopra thus is the first Indian to win a silver medal at the World Athletics Championships and only the second medallist from the country after Anju Bobby George in 2003.
  • First Indian track and field athlete to win world championship: Neeraj Chopra won the gold medal at the 2016 IAAF World U20 Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland. With this win, the then 18-year-old Neeraj became the first Indian track and field athlete to become a world champion in any event and any age level.
  • First Indian World Record holder in track & field: Neeraj Chopra Threw 86.48m at the junior championships in Poland to win the title. With this, he set the new under-20 world record, beating the 84.69m mark established by the previous holder, Latvia's Zigismunds Sirmais. Neeraj’s 86.48m attempt at Bydgoszcz still stands as both the U20 world record as well as the U20 Asian record in the javelin throw.
  • Indian national javelin throw record holder: Neeraj Chopra’s best attempt to date came at the Stockholm Diamond League 2022 in Sweden on June 30, 2022, where he managed his personal best of 89.94m to establish the new national record.
  • First Indian to win javelin throw gold at Asian Games: Neeraj Chopra is the first Indian javelin thrower to win a gold medal at the Asian Games. Before him, Gurtej Singh was the only men’s javelin thrower from the country to win a medal – bronze at the 1982 New Delhi Asian Games. Neeraj threw  88.06m to claim the 2018 Asian Games title.
  • First Indian to win a Diamond League meet: Neeraj Chopra became the first Indian to win a Diamond League meet after he topped the field in Lausanne in 2022. With a depleted field that had world champion Anderson Peters missing, the Indian comfortably led the charts with an 89.08m throw, in his first attempt. 
  • First Indian to become Diamond League champion: Neeraj Chopra is the first Indian athlete in history to clinch the Diamond League trophy, by winning the Zurich Diamond League 2022 Final. The Indian ace recorded a best throw of 88.44m to beat Tokyo 2020 silver medallist and 2016 champion Jakub Vadlejch to the title.
  • First Indian to become world champion: Neeraj Chopra became India's first world champion after he clinched the gold medal in the men's javelin throw final at the World Athletics Championships 2023 in Budapest with an effort of 88.17m. It was Neeraj Chopra's second straight medal at the world championships after his silver at Oregon 2022.

Also Read: India at Olympics: India's Olympic medal tally by every edition

Neeraj Chopra Records: Best throws at major competitions

Event Edition Distance Result
Diamond League
Doha 2025 90.23m Second place
Olympic Games Paris 2024 89.45m Silver medal
Asian Games Hangzhou 2023 88.88m Gold medal
Diamond League Stockholm 2022 89.94m Second place
Commonwealth Games Gold Coast 2018 86.47m Gold medal
World Championships Oregon 2022 88.39m Second place - Q
Asian Championships Bhubaneshwar 2017 85.23m Gold medal
World U20 Championships Bydgoszcz 2016 86.48m Gold medal
Asian Junior Championships Ho Chi-Minh 2016 77.60m Silver medal
South Asian Games Guwahati 2016 82.23m Gold medal
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Neeraj Chopra’s best throws: Here are all the top throws by javelin ace Neeraj Chopra

Neeraj Chopra’s best throw is 90.23m, achieved at the Doha Diamond League on May 16, 2025. The mark stands as the men’s national record in India and Neeraj Chopra’s personal best.

May 17, 2025, 10:11 AM4 min read

Neeraj Chopra’s best throws: Here are all the top throws by javelin ace Neeraj Chopra

Indian javelin ace Neeraj Chopra bettered his throw of 89.94m with a season-best throw of 90.23m at the at the Doha Diamond League 2025. After this, he became the first Indian to breach the 90m mark in the sport.

Read Also: Every Neeraj Chopra Records You Should Know 

Despite the historic achievement, Chopra missed out on the top podium spot at the Doha Diamond League, where Germany’s Julian Weber stole the show with a massive throw. Chopra’s previous best was 89.94m, set on June 30, 2022, at the Stockholm Diamond League — a mark that stood as both his personal best and the men’s national record.

Neeraj achieved his target

  • Neeraj Chopra’s best throw is 90.23m, achieved at the Doha Diamond League on May 16, 2025. The mark stands as the men’s national record in India and Neeraj Chopra’s personal best.
  • The second-best throw of Neeraj Chopra's career is 89.94m. Neeraj had thrown this throw in the Stockholm Diamond League on 30 June 2022. This throw is a national record and one of Neeraj Chopra's best throws.
  • Neeraj Chopra's third-best throw of 89.49m came at the Lausanne Diamond League 2024This is Chopra's best throw ever at a global championship and his third-best overall.
  • Neeraj Chopra's fourth-best throw in javelin throw came at Paris Olympics 2024 where he bagged the silver medal with an 89.45m throw. 
  • His fifth best throw came in Paavo Nurmi Games in 2022 where he went close to that 90m mark once again.
  • In the Lausanne Diamond League 2022, held in the month of August, Neeraj Chopra had thrown the sixth-best throw of his career. Neeraj had thrown the javelin 89.08 meters.
  • Neeraj's seventh-best throw came in the Asian Games 2023 held in Hangzhou. In this round, Neeraj had achieved a distance of 88.88m.
  • Neeraj Chopra's eighth-best throw came in the World Athletics Championships 2023 in Budapest. In this competition which was held on August 25, 2023, Neeraj showed excellent performance and achieved a distance of 88.77m.

Also Read: India at Olympics: India's Olympic medal tally by every edition

Neeraj Chopra’s best throws | Full list to date

Rank Throw Competition Date
1 90.23m Doha Diamond League 2025 May 16, 2025
2 89.94m Stockholm Diamond League 2022 June 30, 2022
3 89.49m Lausanne Diamond League 2024 August 22, 2024
4 89.45m Paris 2024 Olympics - F August 8, 2024
5 89.34m Paris 2024 Olympics - Q August 6, 2024
6 89.30m Paavo Nurmi Games 2022 (Turku) June 14, 2022
7 89.08m Lausanne Diamond League 2022 August 26, 2022
8 88.88m Asian Games 2023 (Hangzhou) October 4, 2023
9 88.77m World Athletics Championships 2023 (Budapest) - Q August 25, 2023
10 88.67m Doha Diamond League 2023 May 5, 2023
11 88.44m Zurich Diamond League Final 2022 September 8, 2022
11 88.44m Doha Diamond League 2025 May 16, 2025
13 88.39m World Athletics Championships 2022 (Oregon) - Q July 21, 2022
14 88.36m Doha Diamond League 2024 May 10, 2024
15 88.20m Doha Diamond League 2025 May 16, 2025
16 88.17m World Athletics Championships 2023 (Budapest) - F August 27, 2023
17 88.13m World Athletics Championships 2022 (Oregon) - F July 23, 2022
18 88.07m Indian Grand Prix 3 2021 (Patiala) March 5, 2021
19 88.06m Asian Games 2018 (Jakarta) August 27, 2018
20 88.00m Zurich Diamond League Final 2022 September 8, 2022
21 87.86m Brussels Diamond League Final 2024 September 14, 2024
22 87.86m ACNW League Meeting 1 2020 (Potchefstroom) January 28, 2020
23 87.80m Federation Cup 2021 (Patiala) March 17, 2021
24 87.73m World Athletics Championships 2023 (Budapest) - F August 27, 2023
25 87.66m Lausanne Diamond League 2023 June 30, 2023
26 87.58m Tokyo 2020 Olympics - F August 7, 2021
27 87.46m Stockholm Diamond League 2022 June 30, 2022
28 87.43m Doha Diamond League 2018 May 4, 2018
29 87.03m Tokyo 2020 Olympics - F August 7, 2021
30 87.00m Zurich Diamond League Final 2022 September 8, 2022
31 86.92m Paavo Nurmi Games 2022 (Turku) June 14, 2022
32 86.84m Stockholm Diamond League 2022 June 30, 2022
33 86.82m Brussels Diamond League Final 2024 September 14, 2024
34 86.79m Kuortane Games 2021 June 26, 2021
35 86.69m Kuortane Games 2022 June 18, 2022
36 86.67m Stockholm Diamond League 2022 June 30, 2022
37 86.65m Tokyo 2020 Olympics - Q August 4, 2021
38 86.52m Doha Diamond League 2023 May 5, 2023
39 86.48m World U20 Championships 2016 (Bydgoszcz) July 23, 2016
40 86.47m Commonwealth Games 2018 (Gold Coast) April 14, 2018

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Thailand Open 2025 badminton: Lakshya Sen knocked out; Malvika Bansod, Unnati Hooda advanced to next round

Top men’s singles shuttler Lakshya Sen bowed out in the opening round of the Thailand Open 2025 badminton tournament.

May 15, 2025, 10:59 AM2 min read

Thailand Open 2025 badminton: Lakshya Sen knocked out; Malvika Bansod, Unnati Hooda advanced to next round

Indian badminton player Lakshya Sen crashed out in the first round of the Thailand Open 2025 badminton tournament while Malvika Bansod, Aakarshi Kashyap and Unnati Hooda advanced to the second round of the women's singles after winning tough matches in the Super 500 tournament.

Unnati faces a tough challenge

Unnati Hooda faces a tough challenge against top seed Pornpawee Chochuwong, while Malvika Bansod takes on former world champion and seasoned Thai shuttler Ratchanok Intanon in the second round.

Aakarshi Kashyap completes the women's singles trio as she looks to continue her campaign. In the men’s singles draw, Tharun Mannepalli remains the lone Indian hope.

Lakshya and Priyanshu suffered early exits

In the men's singles, both Lakshya Sen and Priyanshu Rajawat suffered early exits, bowing out in the first round. The women’s singles saw better fortunes, with Aakarshi Kashyap, Unnati Hooda, and Malvika Bansod progressing to the second round, while Anupama Upadhyay and Santosh Ramraj were eliminated.

Lakshya Sen was ousted by Ireland’s Nhat Nguyen in a three-game encounter that lasted 1 hour and 20 minutes. Sen, ranked among India’s top badminton talents, went down 18-21, 21-9, 17-21 in a match that saw momentum swings.

After narrowly losing the opening game, Sen responded with a dominating performance in the second, unleashing sharp smashes and fast-paced rallies to level the match. But Nguyen dug deep in the decider, pulling ahead 17-13 and holding his composure in the pressure moments to complete the upset and move into the second round. India’s men’s singles woes were compounded by Priyanshu Rajawat’s exit, as he fell short in another three-game battle, losing 13-21, 21-17, 16-21 to Indonesia’s Alwi Farhan.

Kidambi Srikanth could not qualify for main round

Earlier, former world no.1 Kidambi Srikanth could not qualify for the main round of the Thailand Open 2025 badminton tournament after losing his second match in the qualifiers on Tuesday.

Srikanth, a world championships silver medallist, defeated Sankar Subramanian 21-15, 21-17 in his first round of qualifiers before losing to Tharun Mannepalli 21-16, 21-19 in the second.

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