The Indian women's hockey team scripted history after reaching their first-ever Olympic semi-final on Monday.
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It was a fairly good day for India at the Tokyo Olympics on Monday. The Indian athletes might not have won any medals but there were some exceptional performances. The highlight of the day was of course the brilliant victory of the women’s hockey team against Australia in the quarter-final. They have qualified for the semis for the first time in history. Discus thrower Kamalpreet Kaur also had a marvellous showing as she finished in sixth place in the final of the women’s event. Capping it off, equestrian Fouaad Mirza scripted history as he became the first Indian to make it to the final round of an equestrian event at the Olympics.
Sprinter Dutee Chand was the first in action on the day. She had participated in the women’s 200m event and was a part of the fourth heat. However, Dutee disappointed in the contest, finishing in last place. Only the top three from each heat make it through to the next round. The sprinter did not have a good showing in the women’s 100m either, making it a rather forgettable Olympics for the sprinter so far.
The next event on the day for India was shooting. It has been a sport that the nation should have done a lot better in at the Games. Monday’s play was no different. Shooters Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar and Sanjeev Rajput had taken part in the men’s 50m rifle 3 positions qualification. However, neither managed to get through to the next stage. Only the top eight athletes would qualify. Tomar finished in 21st place while Rajput finished in 32nd.
The Indian women’s hockey team scripted history on Monday as they emerged victorious over the mighty Australia in the quarter-final. This is the first time that an Indian women’s hockey team has ever made it into the semi-finals of the Olympics. They beat Australia 1-0. Gurjit Kaur was the one who scored the winner. The goal had come in the second quarter. The final two quarters saw a barrage of Australian attacks as the Indian players fiercely defended their goal.
Indian equestrian Fouaad Mirza did not win a medal in his sport on the day. However, he created his own history. Mirza had been a consistent performer at the Games, and his efforts were rewarded when he managed to qualify to the final of the individual jumping event. It was the first time an Indian managed to qualify to the final of an equestrian event. Mirza managed to finish in 23rd place, but his historic performance was indeed admirable.
Discus thrower Kamalpreet Kaur had a brilliant showing at the Tokyo Games despite not winning a medal. Kaur not only managed to earn an automatic qualification to the final, but she also managed to finish in a strong position in the medal match. The final was one full of confusion and delay, as the rain was unrelenting. It had a severe impact on all of the athletes’ performance. Kaur managed to finish in sixth place after what was a very good performance.
