Gagan Narang to replace Mary Kom as Chef-de-Mission for Paris 2024 Olympics
Shooter Gagan Narang, bronze medalist for India at the 2012 London Olympics, has been chosen as the nation's Chef-de-Mission for the upcoming Paris Games. Notably, Narang will be replacing Mary Kom who was previously selected for the role but resigned.
Reports had emerged a few days back, stating that Gagan Narang and Rohit Rajpal are front-runners to replace Mary Kom. The official statement has now come from the Indian Olympic Association, where IOA president, PT Usha said:
"I was looking for an Olympic medalist to lead our contingent and my young colleague is an apt replacement for Mary Kom. I am also delighted to announce that India's only woman to win two Olympic medals, PV Sindhu, as the female flag-bearer alongside table tennis ace A. Sharath Kamal in the opening ceremony.
"I am confident that our athletes are well prepared to deliver the best results for India in Paris 2024 Olympic Games."
Indian contingent at Paris 2024 Olympics and previous performances
The Indian contingent in the upcoming Olympics is one of the finest the nation has sent to the Games. Starting from the likes of Neeraj Chopra, PV Sindhu, Lovlina Borgohain, and Rohan Bopanna to debutants like Kishore Kumar Jena, Anush Agarwalla, Sriram Balaji, and Balraj Panwar, the squad looks good.
India's recent performances at the Summer Games are not quite up to the mark. The previous edition in Tokyo saw India grab seven medals - which includes two silver medals, four bronze medals and one gold. Before that, the Rio Olympics saw India bring home only two medals - a bronze from wrestler Sakshi Malik, who got a spot in the contingent after Geeta Phogat couldn't achieve the quota, and the other was a silver medal won by PV Sindhu, who is a part of the upcoming Summer Games too.
Considering the preparations of Indian athletes, fans can expect the tally to increase from seven in the Tokyo Games.