Paris Olympics 2024: 3 athletes not included in Indian athletics team ft. Murali Sreeshankar & DP Manu
Paris Olympics 2024 will be held soon, from July 26 to August 11. The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) on Thursday, July 4, announced the 28-member athletics contingent that will be participating in the Summer Olympics 2024 in Paris.
Led by Tokyo 2020 gold medalist in javelin throw Neeraj Chopra, the Indian athletics contingent looks pretty solid with a total of 17 men and 11 women. The Indian athletes qualified for the Paris Olympics 2024 by two paths - one by breaching the Olympic entry standard for their respective event or by being in the qualification zone of the Road to Paris World Athletics rankings.
The cut-off date for the qualification was June 30, which coincided with the last day of the 63rd National Inter-State Senior Athletics Championships held in Panchkula, Haryana. It was the last qualifying event for the Indian athletes and they made sure to give their best to secure a spot for the Paris Olympics 2024.
Although many Indians got their ticket to Paris, there were a few prominent names who would not be participating in the quadrennial event.
Check out the Indian athletics contingent here: AFI announces 28-member squad for Paris Olympics 2024
3 athletes not included in the Indian athletics team for Paris Olympics 2024
#3 Murali Sreeshankar
Indian long jumper Murali Sreeshankar qualified for the Paris Olympics 2024 after securing a quota way back in 2023. Murali breached the Olympic qualification standard of 8.27m in the men’s long jump by securing a silver medal at the Asian Athletics Championships 2023 in Bangkok, Thailand, with a jump of 8.37m.
However, his hopes of representing the nation at the grandest stage took a beating in April 2024 when he sustained a knee injury during training. It unfortunately ruled him out from the entire 2024 season and ultimately from the Paris Olympics 2024 as well.
#2 Ram Baboo
Ram Baboo missed a spot in the Paris Olympics 2024 Indian athletics team despite breaching the qualification standard in the men's 20km racewalk. He did so at the Dudinska 50 Meet in Slovakia when he clocked a personal best time of 1:20:00 to breach the Olympic qualification time of 1:20:10.
Ram Baboo was amongst the five Indians to qualify for the Paris Olympics alongside Akshdeep Singh, Vikash Singh, Paramjeet Singh, and Suraj Panwar. However, the IOC allows only three athletes per country, and AFI went with Akshdeep, Vikash and Paramjeet.
#1 DP Manu
Another promising name who will miss the flight to Paris will be javelin thrower DP Manu. Ranked 15th out of the top 32 in the Road to Paris rankings, he was expected to qualify for the Paris Olympics 2024 easily.
However, Manu tested positive right before the Inter-State Athletics Championships and was suspended by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA). Thus, his name was also excluded from the Paris Olympics squad.
Manu would have been a great medal prospect for India in javelin throw behind Neeraj Chopra and Kishore Jena. He has a personal best of 84.35m and has regularly breached the 80m mark in the current season.