Throughout the Olympics, the Paralympics and the Chess World Championship there was glory and tragedy and sporting nirvana and greater than its fair proportion of drama for Indian sport this 12 months. We try and seize, and herald, one of the best of 2024.
Listed below are ESPN India’s Awards (and Moments), 2024:
Athlete of the 12 months, Male
D Gukesh and his 16 chess items take over the world
2024’s choose was unanimous as soon as once more, however this time it is for an unassuming, humble 18-year-old boy who was barely on anybody’s radar at the beginning of the 12 months. — Sunaadh Sagar
Athlete of the 12 months, Feminine
Manu Bhaker moulds herself anew to be forged in unbreakable bronze
It will have been comprehensible if Manu Bhaker had crumbled. Over the previous three years, after the debacle of Tokyo, after a placing realisation, through the fortnight that granted her immortality. However she did not — Anirudh Menon
Para Athlete of the 12 months, Male
Harvinder ‘Clutch’ Singh flipped the script and made historical past
Till 2024, he was India’s solely medallist in archery at both the Olympics or the Paralympics. In 2024, Harvinder Singh went one higher. He turned India’s solely gold medallist in archery at both the Olympic or the Paralympics. It was a shocking show from Harvinder for his second Paralympic medal, as proper by means of the competitors, he stood head and shoulders above the remainder of the sector — Aaditya Narayan
Para Athlete of the 12 months, Feminine
Avani Lekhara’s unprecedented gold defence seals her legend
If Tokyo 2021 was the start of a star, then Paris 2024 was the Video games that sealed the legend that’s Avani Lekhara. Earlier than this bespectacled, 22-year-old woman in a wheelchair, no Indian had defended an Olympic or Paralympic gold. In Paris, she got here, she noticed, and she or he conquered. Once more. – Zenia D’cunha
Group(s) of the 12 months
Indian chess pronounces itself with never-seen-before dominance of Olympiad
On the forty fifth FIDE Chess Olympiad in Budapest, Indian chess introduced itself in a way by no means seen earlier than — it was pure collective domination. Within the Open part, India was represented by Dommaraju Gukesh, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, Arjun Erigaisi, Vidit Gujrathi, and Harikrishna Pentala (Srinath Narayanan was captain). Within the girls it was Harika Dronavalli, Vaishali Rambabu, Divya Deshmukh, Vantika Agrawal, and Tania Sachdev (Abhijit Kunte was captain). They usually swept all in entrance of them. — Anirudh Menon
Coach of the 12 months
Craig Fulton, the ‘good friend’ whose ‘clear imaginative and prescient’ guided Group India to Olympic bronze
At one level within the Paris Olympics, it seemed just like the Indian males’s hockey group had no likelihood to higher (or retain) the medal they’d gained at Tokyo. However beneath the management of Craig Fulton, a coach with a distinctly un-Indian model of play, a coach many had doubts about after months of failure, they did simply that. — Anish Anand (with Harmanpreet Singh)
Match of the 12 months
Vinesh Phogat pulls of un-scriptable win in opposition to undefeated champion
The perfect sort of sport usually comes with a disclaimer: “even scriptwriters could not have thought this up.” On the Paris Olympics, we noticed a textbook instance of this, of David vs Goliath, and David bringing down the undefeated big by means of sheer willpower and good ways. So how would it not look if we turned Vinesh Phogat vs Yui Susaki right into a script? – Zenia D’Cunha
Rising Athletes of the 12 months
Mona Agarwal, Anmol Kharb, Divya Deshmukh shine shiny in 2024
In an Olympic and Paralympic 12 months, it is solely pure that there are a number of athletes – beforehand unheralded – who come up by means of the rank and catapult themselves into the highlight. It is maybe probably the most thrilling factor as a sports activities fan, seeing somebody new come up on to the worldwide stage, and straight away, make a press release that they belong. – Aaditya Narayan
MOMENTS OF THE YEAR
As a exceptional 2024 attracts to finish, ESPN India picks ten photos, moments, tales that inform the story of probably the most extraordinary Indian sports activities moments witnessed over the 12 months.
With 8 medals in a day, Indian sport lives its biggest day on the Paralympics
That is proper, 8 medals on a single day. A sum of two golds, 3 silvers, 3 bronzes. In simply sooner or later, India had gained as many medals as they’d throughout all Paralympic Video games between 1988 and 2016. At some point’s haul = 28 years’ tally. Extremely, these had been 8 medals gained out of a simply 14 medal probabilities — Zenia D’Cunha
Sumit Antil’s anger at not shattering personal world document brings one other document Paralympics gold
In Paris this summer season, there have been two Indians trying to defend their javelin gold. Just one did… and it is the way during which he did it that makes Sumit Antil so particular. — Anirudh Menon
Amit Saroha’s delight and happiness in protege Dharambir’s gold
How usually do you see celebrations at a world sports activities occasion the place the athlete who completed tenth is maybe the happiest of the lot? One such instance unfolded after the boys’s membership throw F51 ultimate on the Paris Paralympics. It was India 1-2, with Dharambir successful gold, and Pranav Soorma taking silver. Nonetheless, probably the most beaming smile on the Stade de France belonged to Amit Saroha. — Aaditya Narayan.
Sheetal, Rakesh indulge in glory of deserved medal after near-misses
The second proper after Sheetal Devi and Rakesh Kumar gained the Paralmypics bronze medal informed a narrative of reduction. Sheetal was standing up, in tears and taking within the applause whereas Rakesh, on his wheelchair, was equal components completely happy and relieved. — Anish Anand
Neeraj turns into human after Nadeem’s divine throw
On the largest night time of all, what would have been his crowning glory as one of many Olympic greats in his sport, Neeraj’s good friend throughout the border had upstaged him. — Sunaadh Sagar
The gut-punch of Vinesh Phogat’s Olympic disqualification
You keep in mind the sensation. It’s possible you’ll not wish to, however you do. On the morning of August 7, 2024, you, the Indian sports activities fan, awakened with a light-weight coronary heart and a bounce in your step. — Anirudh Menon
PR Sreejesh saves India, but once more
It was his final match carrying India colors. Because it so usually had in his profession earlier than, India’s development boiled right down to PR Sreejesh in purpose. — Aaditya Narayan
Gukesh’s tears lay naked the magnitude within the mundane
Dommaraju Gukesh all the time rearranges the chess items again on his facet of the board after each recreation ends. It is a matter of routine for him: win, loss, tie… earlier than he will get up from the board, he must have organized these items again of their correct locations. Besides on December 12, 2024, there was one thing totally different about this most mundane follow of his. — Anirudh Menon
Swapnil Kusale’s almost forgotten bronze that deserves everlasting celebration
Kusale’s bronze medal was an vital milestone – India’s first within the long-form format of 50m 3P; gained by an unassuming, 28-year-old, an age nearly thought-about too outdated in Indian capturing circles, and that too finishing a private redemption arc after one lapse in focus value him an Asian Video games gold. — Zenia D’Cunha
A tearful finish to Sunil Chhetri’s profession that deserved extra
It felt like a private failure. Not for Sunil Chhetri, not after 19 superb years and 94 targets for India. However for his teammates, his adoring followers that collectively idolized him their entire lives, it was a bittersweet finish to a profession that deserved extra. — Sunaadh Sagar