Arshad Nadeem has been biding his time under the spotlight thrown on Neeraj Chopra for a while now. Although the Pakistani shares a great camaraderie with the Indian and considers him as an inspiration, he’s always had to play second fiddle. Be it the World Championships in Budapest followed by the Asian Games in Hangzhou last year, Arshad was forced to settle for the silver.
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While it is unfortunate that Vinesh Phogat has become a weapon to settle scores on social media in a deeply political and polarised country, we should remember that her career transcends the sporting arena.
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Check out India's schedule of Day 14 of competitions at the ongoing Paris Olympics here:
Athletics
Women’s 4x400m Relay Round 1:
Jyothika Sri Dandi, Subha Venkatesan, Vithya Ramraj, Poovamma MR -- 2:10 pm
Men’s 4x400m Relay Round 1:
Muhammed Anas, Muhammed Ajmal, Amoj Jacob, Santhosh Tamilarasan, Rajesh Ramesh -- 2:35 pm
Wrestling
Men’s Freestyle 57kg Bronze Medal Match:
Aman Sehrawat vs Darian Toi Cruz (Puerto Rico) -- 9:45 pm
Golf
Women's Individual Round 3:
Aditi Ashok and Diksha Dagar -- 12:30pm
On Court of Arbitration for Sports to hear today Vinesh Phogat's plea against her disqualification, Vinesh Phogat's uncle Mahavir Phogat said, "Our hopes have increased and we hope that the court will give a decision in our favour. The federation has hired a very good lawyer. We are very hopeful."
Indian wrestler Antim Panghal arrives in New Delhi after she was ousted in the opening round at Paris Olympics before facing the prospect of a three-year ban for alleged indiscipline.
The ad hoc division of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has officially registered Vinesh Phogat’s application, and the matter has been referred to Dr Annabelle Bennett, who will hold a hearing with the concerned parties today.
A decision is expected to "be issued before the end of the Olympic Games".
Hungary's Kristof Rasovszky won the men's 10km marathon swimming gold at the Olympics on Friday, holding off German silver medallist Oliver Klemet in a gruelling slog along the final length of the Seine River.
David Betlehem won bronze for Hungary. (Reuters)
The two Indians are yet to start their third round.
Turkish shooter Yusuf Dikec went viral for his cool, calm demeanour at the Paris Olympics, but said there were "storms" within him as he won silver in the mixed team 10-meter air pistol event.
His nonchalant pose, with his non-shooting hand casually tucked into his pocket, sparked a flurry of memes and won a legion fans online - as well as eliciting a tribute from pole vault great Mondo Duplantis and banter with Elon Musk.
He eschewed the high-tech gear of his competitors, opting for a simple yellow ear plug and regular glasses as he and Sevval Ilayda Tarhan secured their podium finish.
"At that moment, everyone says I seemed very calm, but actually, storms were raging inside me," said Dikec, a former Turkish Gendarmerie officer.
"I think my shooting pose represented the Olympic spirit very well: the fair play, simplicity, clarity, and naturalness. That's why it got so much attention." (Reuters)
Aneeshya Sreejesh can't quite make sense of her emotions right now.
The wife in her is happy that her husband will have more time at home but the "die-hard fan" in her is sad that PR Sreejesh's galvanising presence in front of the goalpost would no longer be a constant in Indian hockey.
The Indian men's hockey team clinched a second successive bronze medal at the Olympic Games for the first time in 52 years, rallying to beat Spain 2-1 in third place playoff, giving veteran goalkeeper Sreejesh a fitting farewell on Thursday. He was also a part of the squad that won the bronze in the Tokyo Games.
"I am not only his wife, but also a die-hard fan. Being a fan I will definitely miss him on the field and being his wife, I will get more of his time. So I am happy and sad at the same time. Both the emotions are there," Aneeshya, who is a former long-jumper and an Ayurveda doctor, told PTI Bhasha.
"I will cook traditional Kerala food for him, vegetarian and non-vegetarian both. He loves it so much and I know he must be craving it," she said.
"We haven't planned celebrations yet but there will be a lot of people to welcome him. His brother came here from Canada with his family. The whole family has gathered here. It's a big moment for us," she added. (PTI)
French police arrested an Egyptian Olympic wrestler on suspicion of sexual assault in the early hours of Friday outside a cafe he had visited in the French capital, the Paris prosecutors office said.
The wrestler, who was not named, was arrested for allegedly touching the buttocks of another customer at the cafe, prosecutors said in a statement, adding that an investigation had been opened.
A senior official from the Egyptian Olympic delegation said he was unaware of the arrest and unable to comment. (Reuters)
Emmanuel Wanyonyi looked in great shape on Friday as won his semi-final from gun to tape to move into the Olympic 800 metres final where he will hope to make it five in a row for Kenya.
Wanyonyi, silver medallist at last year’s world championship, was pushed at the end by American Bryce Hoppel but ensured he crossed the line first in 1:43.32 minutes.
Algeria’s Djamel Sedjati was an impressive winner of the first heat in 1:45.08, as was Canada’s world champion Marco Arop (1:45.05) in the second. (Reuters)
China won the gold medal in the women's canoe double 500-metre final at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium on Friday.
Ukraine came second to secure the silver medal, with Canada picking up the bronze. (Reuters)
The CAS ad hoc division had earlier officially registered Vinesh Phogat’s application. She is being represented by senior advocates Harish Salve and Vidushpat Singhania.
New Zealand won Olympic gold in the women's kayak double 500m at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium on Friday.
Hungary came in second to secure the silver medal, with Germany picking up the bronze. (Reuters)
Britain's Toby Roberts won the gold medal in sport climbing's boulder and lead event at the Paris Olympics on Friday.
Japan's Sorato Anraku took the silver and Austrian veteran Jakob Schubert the bronze. (Reuters)
Former Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar on Friday came out in support of wrestler Vinesh Phogat who recently made headlines after being disqualified from the final match of 50 kg wrestling at 2024 Paris Olympics.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), the cricket legend said that Phogat was robbed of a deserving silver medal defying logic and sporting sense.
Germany won Olympic gold in the men's kayak double 500m final at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium on Friday.
Hungary came in second to secure the silver medal, with Australia picking up the bronze. (Reuters)
Martin Fuksa of the Czech Republic won gold in the men's canoe single 100m final at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium on Friday.
Brazil's Isaquias Queiroz came in second to secure the silver medal, with Serghei Tarnovischi of Moldova picking up the bronze. (Reuters)
Germany's Lea Friedrich set a world record in the 200 metres flying lap during qualification for the Olympic women's cycling sprint race at the National Velodrome today. (Reuters)
Valentin Bontus of Austria won gold in the men's kiteboarding on Friday. Toni Vodisek of Slovenia secured silver in the final, with Max Maeder of Singapore picking up bronze.
Bontus, 23, celebrated his win with a huge aerial jump on his foiling board pumping his fist after a dominant finish.
The kiteboarding men's final brings the Olympic sailing events to a close and marks a successful debut for the action-packed foiling class. (Reuters)
China's Chen Yiwen won the gold medal in the women's 3-metre springboard event on Friday at the Paris Olympics.
Australia's Maddison Keeney took silver and China's Chang Yani won the bronze medal. (Reuters)
Argentina beat Belgium 3-1 on penalties to win the bronze medal after a 2-2 draw in regulation time in women's hockey at the Paris Olympics on Friday as forward Sofia Cairo scored on the pivotal final shot following goalkeeper Cristina Cosentino's two blocks.
It was Argentina's third bronze and sixth Olympic medal in women's hockey, their second medal in a row after receiving silver in Tokyo. Belgium will have to wait another four years to try to get their first Olympic women's medal. (Reuters)
Germany secured the bronze medal in the women's Olympic soccer tournament with a 1-0 win over Spain thanks to a Giulia Gwinn penalty after the world champions missed a penalty deep in added time at the Lyon Stadium on Friday.
Germany, who lost to the United States in the semis, grabbed the lead in the 65th minute when Gwinn earned the penalty and converted after a foul by Spanish keeper Cata Coll.
Spain's Alexia Putellas squandered a chance to send the match to extra time as her penalty was saved by goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger in the final seconds of the match. (Reuters)
With the third round still underway, Aditi dropped 25 spots to be tied 39th. Diksha, meanwhile, dropped 28 spots to be tied 42nd.
The 21-year-old Sehrawat lost to Japanese top-seed Rei Higuchi in the 57kg free-style semifinal bout on Thursday as the India's hopes of winning a gold from wrestling faded. However, he still stands a chance to win bronze.
Karlos Nasar of Bulgaria won the gold medal in the men's 89kg weightlifting at the Paris Olympics on Friday, breaking the world record with a total lift of 404kg.
Yeison Lopez of Colombia took silver and Antonino Pizzolato of Italy claimed the bronze. (Reuters)
China's Ma Long, Wang Chuqin and Fan Zhendong won the gold medal in the Olympic table tennis men's team final on Friday, with Sweden's Truls Moregard, Anton Kallberg and Kristian Karlsson taking silver.
France, led by the Lebrun bothers, claimed bronze. (Reuters)
International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach on Friday said he has a "certain understanding" for Vinesh Phogat, who has challenged her disqualification from Olympic finals in the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), but also wondered where would one draw the line after allowing small concessions in certain situations.
The 29-year-old was disqualified for being 100gm overweight ahead of her 50kg category gold medal bout on Wednesday. She then appealed against her disqualification in CAS, demanding that she be awarded a joint silver medal before eventually announcing her retirement from the sport.
"I must say, I have a certain understanding for the wrestler; it's clearly a human touch," said Bach, during an IOC media conference here.
"Now, it's (appeal) in CAS. We will, at the end, follow the CAS decision. But, again, the international (wrestling) federation, they have to apply their interpretation, their rules. This is their responsibility," he added. (PTI)
The United States beat world champions Italy in straight sets in Olympic men's volleyball on Friday to take the bronze medal, their sixth Olympic medal in the sport.
In a match of very fine margins where all three sets could have gone either way, it was the Americans who did not crumble under the pressure as outside hitter Aaron Russell led the scoring with 15 points in a tight 25-23 30-28 26-24 victory.
The win earned the US their third bronze to go level with Italy who have also won six medals at the Olympics but never the gold. (Reuters)
Italy won the Olympic track cycling women's Madison event on Friday, with Chiara Consonni and Vittoria Guazzini producing a stunning ride at the National Velodrome on Friday.
Britain's Elinor Barker and Neah Evans surged to the silver medal by winning the last sprint, while the Netherlands duo of Maike van der Duin and Lisa van Belle took the bronze. (Reuters)
Despite a last desperate move from Puerto Rico's Darian Toi Cruz in the end, Aman comfortably won the bout 13-5. The 21-year-old wrestler has just won a bronze in his first Olympic Games!
Sehrawat won the medal in the men's 57kg free-style category at the Paris Games here on Friday.
India now have five bronze medals and a silver, which javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra bagged on Thursday.
Aman won the bout 13-5 to keep the tradition of wrestlers returning home with a medal since 2008 Beijing Games, where Sushil Kumar had finished third.
On Thursday, Aman had lost to Japanese top-seed Rei Higuchi in the semifinal bout to set up a bronze-medal bout with Darian Cruz.
Canada won gold in the men's Olympic 4x100 metres relay final on Friday. South Africa took silver and Britain claimed the bronze.
The United States won the gold medal in the Olympic women's 4x100 metres relay on Friday, their 12th title in the event, after Britain botched their final exchange.
The US team of Melissa Jefferson, Twanisha Terry, Paris Olympic 200m champion Gabby Thomas and Sha'Carri Richardson clocked 41.78 seconds after getting the baton around the track with no major mishaps.
Britain were not so lucky.
Leading the US through three legs, Amy Hunt struggled to get the baton into Daryll Neita's hand in pouring rain at Stade de France. Neita lost all her momentum, but still brought Britain home in 41.85 for silver.
Germany claimed bronze in 41.97.
Japan's Rei Higuchi won the gold while Spencer Lee of the United States claimed silver in the men's 57kg freestyle wrestling at the Paris Olympics on Friday.
India's Aman Sehrawat and Gulomjon Abdullaev of Uzbekistan took bronze.
Bulgaria's Magomed Ramazanov won the 86kg gold, while Hassan Yazdani of Iran took silver. Aaron Brooks of the US and Dauren Kurugliev of Greece won bronze.
Dominican Republic's Marileidy Paulino surged to victory in the 400 metres on Friday to add Olympic gold to her world title.
Paulino, who won silver in Tokyo, has been unbeaten over the distance at four consecutive athletics meets this year and stormed to a comfortable lead halfway through the lap, finishing in 48.17 seconds.
That broke the Olympic record set in 1996 by France's Marie-Jose Perec.
Bahrain's Salwa Eid Naser took silver and Poland's Natalia Kaczmarek earned the bronze.
Belgium's Nafissatou Thiam won the gold medal in the Olympic women's heptathlon on Friday.
Britain's Katarina Johnson-Thompson took silver and Belgium's Noor Vidts claimed bronze.
Spain secured the gold medal in the Olympic men's soccer tournament after Sergio Camello scored twice in extra time to earn a dramatic 5-3 win over hosts France in a nail-biting final at Parc des Princes on Friday.
The teams were locked at 3-3 at the end of normal time but Camello scored 10 minutes into the extra period and scored another at the end to earn Spain their first Olympic title since 1992.
France had mounted an incredible comeback after going 3-1 down to send the game to extra time as Maghnes Akliouche pulled a goal back in the 79th before a VAR review awarded the hosts a penalty that Jean-Philippe Mateta converted in stoppage time.
Spain rallied in the first half after Enzo Millot opened the scoring for France in the 12th minute by scoring three goals in 10 minutes to get within touching distance of the title thanks to a Fermin Lopez double and superb free-kick from Alex Baena.
Germany's Yemisi Ogunleye won the gold medal in the Olympic women's shot put on Friday.
New Zealand's Maddison-Lee Wesche took silver and China's Song Jiayuan claimed bronze.
The hearing in the Vinesh Phogat case was conducted over two rounds. Phogat's claim to the silver medal in the 50kg wrestling category was defended by both her Indian and French lawyers. Senior advocate Harish Salve is reported to have spoken for over an hour laying out the legitimate reasons for her claim.
An operational verdict is expected from the Sole Arbitrator soon. "Indian Olympic Association remained hopeful of a positive resolution of wrestler Vinesh Phogat's application before the Ad hoc Division of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against her failed weigh-in," the IOA said in a statement.
Soon after Sehrawat's win, PM Modi tweeted, "More pride thanks to our wrestlers! Congratulations to Aman Sehrawat for winning the Bronze Medal in the Men's Freestyle 57 kg at the Paris Olympics. His dedication and perseverance are clearly evident. The entire nation celebrates this remarkable feat."
Other senior leaders who congratulated Sehrawat included Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge who in a post on X said, "Many Congratulations, Aman Sehrawat, on winning the Bronze medal in Men's Freestyle 57 kg wrestling event at the Paris 2024 Olympics. Your triumph is a testament to your dedication, perseverance, and sporting prowess. Wishing you continued success and glory in your future endeavours!"
Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi too congratulated the grappler for his win. In a post in Hindi on X, Gandhi said, "Hearty congratulations to Aman Sehrawat on winning the bronze medal in freestyle wrestling. Very happy to see India winning its sixth medal at the Paris Olympics."
He added, "The entire country is proud of the performance of our Olympic team."
Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Friday also congratulated wrestler Aman Sehrawat for winning the bronze medal at the Paris Olympics. "Wrestler Aman Sehrawat won the bronze medal by performing brilliantly in the Paris Olympics 2024. Many congratulations and best wishes to you for this achievement. This is a proud moment for all of us," Saini said.
Celebrations erupted at the grappler's native village, Birohar, in Haryana's Jhajjar district.
Sudhir Sehrawat, Aman's uncle, said he used to practise for 10-12 hours every day and the medal was the result of the hard work.
"He brought a medal for the country. He will certainly bring a gold medal in the next Olympics," he said.
Official confirmation is still awaited.
Since the matter is sub-judice, IOA can only state that the Sole Arbitrator Dr. Annabelle Bennett AC SC (Australia) heard all parties — applicant Vinesh Phogat, the respondents United World Wrestling and the International Olympic Committee as well as IOA as an interested party over three hours.
Each of the parties was accorded an opportunity to file its detailed legal submissions prior to the hearing and then present oral arguments. It was indicated by the Sole Arbitrator that the operative part of the order may be expected soon, with a detailed order with reasons to follow thereafter.
IOA President Dr PT Usha thanked Senior Advocates Harish Salve and Vidushpat Singhania as well as the Krida Legal team for assisting the IOA present its arguments during the hearing.
“IOA deems its duty to back Vinesh and would like to reaffirm its steadfast, unflinching, and unwavering support to her, regardless of the outcome of this matter. We are proud of her countless achievements on the wrestling mat throughout her stellar career,” Dr Usha said.