Paris Olympics 2024 Indian judo squad: Complete list of judokas in the Indian contingent
The Indian judo team for the Paris Olympics 2024 will have a single representative, Tulika Maan, who has secured her place through the continental quota. As the only judoka representing India, Tulika is set to compete in the women’s +78kg category, aiming to make history for her country in a sport where India has yet to win an Olympic medal.
The judo events at the Paris 2024 Olympics will take place from July 27 to August 3 at the Champ de Mars Arena.
India’s history in Olympic judo has seen few participants and no medals. At Tokyo 2020, Sushila Devi Likmabam was India's sole judoka, but she was unable to advance past the opening round in the women’s 48kg division. Tulika Maan aims to change this narrative by becoming the first Indian to win an Olympic medal in judo.
How did Indian judoka Tulika Maan qualify for Paris Olympics 2024?
Tulika Maan is no stranger to success. She won a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham. However, she did not initially expect to secure the continental quota for the Paris Olympics, believing her teammates Avtar Singh (100kg) and Vijay Yadav (60kg) had better chances.
Despite facing severe injuries, including damaged ligaments in her knee, Tulika won the National Games in 2022.
She then narrowly missed out on a medal at the Asian Games 2023 after losing to Amarsaikhan Adiyasuren in the bronze-medal match. The Indian judoka thus had to settle for a fifth-place finish in Hangzhou.
Additionally, Tulika secured a bronze medal at the Asian Open Championships, a fifth-place finish at the Asian Championships, and a Round-of-32 win over Canada’s Portuondo Isasi at the World Championships, which helped her accumulate much-needed points to climb up the rankings.
The 25-year-old collected 1345 ranking points during the qualification period from June 2022 to June 2024, finishing 36th in the standings published by the International Judo Federation (IJF). Her efforts have made her the ninth female judoka to represent Indian judo at the Olympics.