Paris Olympics 2024 Day 7 Highlights: Tajinderpal Singh Toor fails to qualify for shot put final

Tajinderpal Singh Toor fails to qualify for the men's shot put final with a throw of 18.05 metres. 

Tajinderpal Singh Toor makes a foul throw in his second attempt and is in trouble as far as qualifying for the final in shot put is concerned. 

Tajinderpal Singh Toor throws 18.05 and is placed 14th. 

Tajinder needs to enter the top 12 to qualify for the final.

Tajinderpal Singh Toor will be in action in the Men's shot put in athletics. Ranked 24 in the world, Toor has a personal best of 21.77 metres and a season best of 20.38. 

Yogi Adityanath writes in Hindi, whuich roughly translates to "Hearty congratulations to India's star shuttler Lakshya Sen for winning the quarter-finals of badminton men's singles at Paris Olympics-2024 and making it to the semi-finals! Your success in making the countrymen happy will prove to be an inspiration for many players. We wish that the sequence of victories continues like this."

Lakshya Sen is now one win away from confirming a medal in his maiden Olympics appearance. The Almorah shuttler is carrying the hopes of Indian badminton as he is the lone shuttle remaining in the fray at the Paris Games. Gold medal contenders Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty lost in the men's doubles quarter-final on Thursday while two-time medalist PV Sindhu was shown the door in women's singles Round of 16.

Lakshya battled against the odds as an unseeded player against the 12th seed Chou, who was uncharacteristically aggressive. The straight-game win over his compatriot HS Prannoy in the Round of 16 did help as Lakshya remained fresh throughout the 75-minute contest and dug into his repository of grit to pull off a memorable victory. Lakshya clinched only his second win in five meetings against the Taiwanese shuttler, who was gutted after the valiant show.

Lakshya Sen beats Chou Tien Chen in three games: Report

Parul Chaudhary finished 14th in the heats of the Women's 5000m Round 1. She put forth her season best performance of 15:10:68, but her efforts went in vain.

Lakshya Sen is through to the men's singles semis in badminton, the first Indian to do so. Lakshya beat Taiwan's Chou Tien Chen 19-21, 21-15, 21-12

With a lead of 16-11, Lakshya Sen is on the cusp of history. He will has to get 5 points to make his way into the semi-final. 

Lakshya Sen has looked in brilliant form and is ahead in the quarterfinal match at the end of the first half in the deciding game. The Indian shuttler has pushed Chen with some aggressive play and kept him on the backfoot. 

Lakshya Sen is on the lead, 5-4 in the third and deciding game. Chen got the last game with a smash down the line. The Indian crowd at the venue is cheering for the young Indian shuttler. 

Lakshya Sen also had a heated argument with the chair umpire during this while, adding more excitement to the match. 

Lakshya Sen has shown nerves of steel to win the second game 21-15 against Chen. He is now one game away from becoming the first Indian man into an Olympic semis in badminton. 

Ankita Dhyani finishes last in her heats in the Women's 5000m Round 1 with a timing of 16:19:38, taking the 20th spot. Next up in action is Parul Chaudhary. 

From 13-13, Lakshya Sen has won four straight points to take a substantial lead. He is not far away from taking the match into a decider. Is there gas left in Chen for the remainder of the second game? 

Lakshya Sen is not willing to give up the ghost. He has engaged Chen in long rallies and has stormed to a 13-11 lead. But the work is not done for the Indian shuttler just yet 

India's Ankita Dhyani is languishing at the bottom of the heats in Women's 5000m Round 1 after the 3200 metres. Japan's Yuma Yamamoto is on top. 

Lakshya Sen is not willing to throw in the towel. It's 5-6 in the second game. Chou Tien Chen has made use of the court to good effect and has stormed into the lead. Needs something extraordinary from Lakshya to hold his opponent. 

Lakshya Sen has lost the opening game 19-21 against Chou Tien Chen. From once being on the backfoot, Lakshya stormed back into the lead, but his Taiwanese opponent pulled off some stunning shots to have the last laugh. 

It's now up to Lakshya to make a comeback. 

India's Parul Chaudhary and Ankita Dhyani will soon be in action in the Women's 5000m Round 1. 

The top 8 from each heat will advance to the final. 

Lakshya Sen is within touching distance of taking the opening game. But Chen is not willng to give up, although he is still trailing 17-18. 

At 15-15, Lakshya Sen has held on to his hopes of taking the opening game in the quarterfinal. Chou Tien Chen is on the backfoot, it goes without saying. 

Lakshya Sen has threatened to catch up as the scoreline reads 15-13, but there's more work to be done by the Indian shuttler. Chou Tien Chen still with the upper hand. 

Lakshya Sen was on the backfoot at 2-5, but the Indian shuttler has won four points in a row to now take a lead of 6-5 against Chou Tien Chen.

India's Vishnu Saravanan finished 20th in Race 3 of the Sailing Men's Dinghy event with a time of 51:40, trailing the leader, Matt Wearn of Australia, by 2.17 seconds. In Race 4, he placed 19th with a time of 46:44, 1.15 seconds behind Filip Jurisic. Currently, Vishnu stands 22nd in the overall standings.

India's Lakshya Sen will be up in action in his quarterfinal clash against Taiwan's Chou Tien Chen. The youngster is on the cusp of history as Indian man has ever qualified for the semis in badminton singles at the Olympics.  

Carlos Alcaraz stormed through to the final of Paris Olympics in tennis singles after beating Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-1, 6-1. He will now face the winner of the Novak Djokovic vs Lorenzo Musetti clash in the final. 

The USA clinched the bronze medal by winning the fourth set with a score of 37 against India's 35. Ankita scored 8 and 8, while Dhiraj contributed with 9 and 10 for India. Brandy scored 10 and 9, and Casey scored 9 and 9 for the USA. With this victory, Casey made history by becoming the first American woman to stand on the podium for archery.

India scores 38

Ankita: 10, 9

Dhiraj: 9, 10

USA scores 34

Brandy: 10, 9

Casey: 7, 8

India stages a comeback in the third set.

The USA have also won the second set vs India to take 4-0 lead in the bronze medal match.

INDIA scores 35

Ankita- 7, 9

Dhiraj- 10, 9

USA scores 37

Brandy-10, 10

Casey-8, 9

The USA win the first set vs India in the bronze medal match. USA wins 38-37. USA leads 2-0

USA

Casey-10, 10

Brandy-9, 10

INDIA

Ankita- 7, 10

Dhiraj- 10, 10

India will face Casey Kaufhold and Brady Ellison of the USA in the archery bronze medal match. Bot set of archers are on the range.

India will face the USA in the bronze medal match in mixed-team archery. Germany stunned the USA to set up the Gold medal match against South Korea. 

USA have Brady Ellison, a three-time Olympic medallist, and Casey Kaufhold, who is the World No. 1 in women's individual archery recurve rankings. 

India are ranked No. 9 while the USA are No. 3. 

Taking into consideration the issues faced by athletes at the Olympic Games village because of the sudden rise in temperature and humidity in Paris, a co-ordination meeting was held between the Sports Ministry, SAI, IOA, Indian Embassy in France on Friday morning (IST 11am) and it was decided that the Indian Embassy in France would buy 40 ACs in Paris and provide it at the games village rooms where the Indian athletes are staying. Consequent to the decision, the Indian Embassy in France has already purchased the ACs, which have already been delivered to the Games village. 

The ACs are plug and play units and athletes have already started using the ACs. It is expected that with this they will have a more comfortable stay and get better rest which is much needed for a good performance. The cost of all the ACs have been borne by the Sports Ministry.

"Right now, it’s all about us. We are not thinking about anyone else. I am sure we will be doing that," Graig Fulton said after India stunned Australia for the first time in 52 years in Olympic hockey. 

The coach is delighted with the aggressive intent shown by the team in the first two quarters. India took a 2-0 lead against Australia in a fantastic show in their final Pool B match. 

"Yeah, I mean, you can go 2-0 down in two minutes. It’s about how you respond. It always going to be the case. You have got to win the game in the first quarter. Today, we finished them there," he told Jio Cinema. 

The coach also heaped praise on Harmanpreet Singh, who scored a brace and Abhishek, who has been in fine form, scoring outfield goals. 

"Yeah, they are just calm. They are just doing what they naturally do. It’s just nice to see," he added. 

India lose the semi-final clash 2-6 to the mighty Koreans and will play the bronze medal match later in the evening where they will face either Germany or the USA.

Korea: 10, 10, 9, 10

Sihyeon: 10, 9

Woojin: 10, 10

India: 9, 9, 10, 10

Ankita: 9, 10

Dhiraj: 9, 10

Korea wins the second set 38-36. India trail 2-4

Korea: 9, 10, 9, 10

Sihyeon: 9, 9

Woojin: 10, 10

India: 9, 9, 10, 8

Ankita: 9, 10

Dhiraj: 9, 8

Korea wins the second set 38-35 vs India. The match is tied 2-2.

Korea: 10, 10, 9, 9

Sihyeon: 10, 9

Woojin: 10, 9

India: 8, 9, 9, 9

Ankita: 8, 9

Dhiraj: 9, 9

India wins the first set 38-36. India leads 2-0.

Korea: 

Sihyeon: 8, 10

Woojin: 9, 9

India:

Ankita: 9, 9

Dhiraj: 10, 10
 

The next match will be India's semifinal against Korea. Both set of archers have reached the range. Korea defeated Italy 6-2 in the second quarterfinal. The match consists of four sets, with each team taking four shots per set. The team that wins the most sets takes the match.
 

It's confirmed. South Korea are India's opponents in the semi-final. The Koreans are the World No. 1 in mixed team recurve archery. It's going to be a big test for Dhiraj Bommadevara and Ankita Bhakat. Can they stun the Koreans? History awaits India in archery. 

1972 - India 3-1 Australia
1976 - Inida 1-6 Australia
1976 (Playoff) - India 1-1 (4-5 shootou)
1984 - India 2-4 Australia
1992 - India 0-1 Australia
2000 - India 2-2 Australia 
2004 - India 3-4 Australia
2020 - India 1-7 Australia
2024 - India 3-2 Australi

India have qualified for the quarter-finals after finishing second in Pool B. They have finished behind defending champions Belgium. 

India have beaten Australia in men's Olympic hockey for the first time since 1972. That's a 52-year-long wait ended. 

Harmanpreet Singh's brace and Abhhishek's goal helps India script history. Craig Thomas and Govers Blake scored for Australia, but it was not enough for Australia.

Australia make it 2-3. Govers Blake scores from a penalty strike. He takes the tournament lead with his 7th goal. With five minutes to go, this will now be a good test for India. Their defensive discipline is going to be tested. 

India were celebrating their fourth goal after Abhishek deposited a cross from Mandeep Singh into the goal. However, the video referee is consulted and India's goal is scratched off. A foul against Mandeep inside the D. 

It remains 3-1 in India's favour in the final quarter. 

In a gripping fourth set, India clinched victory with a total of 37 points, narrowly defeating Spain, who scored 36 points. Ankita contributed with scores of 9 and 8, while Dhiraj delivered a strong performance with two 10s. On the Spanish side, Pablo scored two 9s, and Elia recorded an 8 and a 10. India's win in this set secured their advancement to the semifinals, marking a thrilling end to the match. INDIA ADVANCES TO SEMIFINALS!

India: 9, 10, 8, 10= 37 points

Spain: 9, 8, 8, 10= 36 points

In an intense third set of the archery match, Spain narrowly edged out India with a score of 37 to 36. India's scores of 9, 9, 8, and 10 were closely contested, but Spain's impressive performance, featuring two 10s, an 8, and another 10, secured them the set victory. This win brought the overall score to a 3-3 tie.      

India: 9, 9, 8, 10= 36 points

Spain: 10, 10, 8, 10= 37 points

India do well to keep a fend off a penalty corner threat at the end of the half. Refreshing hockey from Graig Fulton's men as they have not let the attacking flair drop after the third goal. 

Can India keep up the pressure and win this one? The defensive discipline will come to test and veteran PR Sreejesh will be keen on making a mark. 

India and Spain ended the second set tied with 38 points each. India's consistent performance, marked by scores of 10, 9, 9, and 10, matched Spain's strong showing of 9, 10, 10, and 9. Despite the tie in this set, India managed to take a 3-1 lead overall.

India: 10, 9, 9, 10 = 38 points

Spain: 9, 10, 10, 9 = 38 points

India edged out Spain in the first set. The Indian archers displayed consistent form, with scores of 9 and 10 from both team members, including Ankita's double 9s and Dhiraj's flawless double 10s. On the other side, Spain put up a strong fight, accumulating 37 points. Pablo's steady 9s and Elia's 10 and 9 kept the competition intense

India: 9, 10, 9, 10 = 38 points

Spain: 9, 10, 9, 9 = 37 points

.

Abhishek troubles the Australian goalkeeper in the 36th minute as India are looking to put more pressure on Australia. This is good from Harmanpreet Singh's men. They are making a statement here before the quarter-finals. 

India take on Spain in the quarter-final of mixed team archery. Spain are heading into the last-eight after beating China in the Round of 16. 

India have Dhiraj Bommadevara and Ankita Bhakat in the line-up. They defeated Indonesia in the Round of 16. 

This is going to be an exciting affair. 

The quarter-final will be decided over 4 sets. Each team will get 4 arrows in a set. 

India get a penalty stroke early and it's captain Harmanpreet who steps up and makes it 3-1!

Let's get over breath for some time now as India head in with a 2-1 lead. Goals from Abhishek and Harmanpreet and goalkeeping brilliance from Sreejesh has kept India in the lead for now. All to play for in the next 2 quarters. 

A lovely save by Andrew Charter denies Harmanpreet from restoring the 2-goal lead for India. The score remains 2-1 at the moment. 

A poor PC has been recycled well by Australia who are able to send in a pass past Sreejesh, which is well controlled by Thomas Craig and sends it into the net. 2-1!

Sreejesh has been singlehandedly keeping Australia at bay as another PC has been saved by the Indian goalkeeper. There was chaos after the initial dragflick was blocked by the runners, before Sreejesh pulled off another big save. 

What a show from Manu Bhaker. The hat-trick dreams are alive! 

A terrific set of precision and rapid shooting from the two-time medalist. 

Precision: 97, 98, 99

Rapid: 100, 98, 98

Harmanpreet Singh scored his fifth goal of Paris Olympics to help India take 2-0 lead against Australia after the first quarter of the Pool B match.

PC for India and it's Harmanpreet Singh who converts to make it 2-0. Australia have no clue what has hit them at the moment! 

Australia had started to take command of things but India have scored against the run of play. Australian defence was caught sleeping after a PC in the Indian circle and it is Abhishek who scores yet again. 

Manu Bhaker shoots 98 in second rapid series. 9 10s and an 8 in that series. She still is second behind Hungary's Major Veronika. She is all but through to the final of women's 25m pistol event. 

There's no stopping Manu Bhaker. The two-time medalist is looking set to make it to her third final. Manu Bhaker shoots a 100 in the first series of rapid. She is currently at the second spot. 

World champion Sha'Carri Richardson's long awaited Olympic debut got off to a terrific start on Friday as she cruised through the women's 100 metres heats, while her Jamaican rival Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce also advanced in her fifth Games.

The American won her heat in 10.94 seconds, three years after her Olympic dreams came crashing down around her when she tested positive for cannabis, while twice champion Fraser-Pryce (10.92) finished second in her heat.

Asked if the run marked redemption for Tokyo, Richardson said she was focused on the present and fans cheered at the Stade de France the moment she appeared on the starting line. Running out of lane six, Richardson easily took the lead by the midway point and glided through the finish before quickly exiting the purple track. She will compete in the semi-final on Saturday, with the medal race set for later that evening. The top three performers in each heat advanced, along with the next three fastest across all heats. (Input from Reuters)

A bright start from the Indian team as they have got the Australian defence on the back foot. Australia had one good attack, with Sreejesh making the big save. 

PUSHBACK!

India vs Australia match gets underway as both teams look to end the group stages on a high.

Anant Jeet Singh is currently in 25th place out of 30 after two rounds in the Skeet event qualification. He scored 23 and 22 points in the first two series. There are three more series remaining, and the top six shooters will qualify for the final.

The Indian playing XI is out for the final group game against Australia. 

Lakshya Sen will take on Chou Tien Chen in the men's singles quarter-final only after 9 pm IST. The match has been scheduled on Court 1. 

It's going to be a crucial test for Lakshya against the senior campaigner from Taiwan. 

Nethra Kumanan, a two-time Olympian, finished a credible 6th out of 43 in women's dingy sailing on August 1. That was the first of the 10 races in the event. Nethra will be in action in Race 2 and Race 3 today. Each of the athletes will be involved in 10 races before a medal race. 

Gracious in defeat, HS Prannoy had a special message for Lakshya Sen. See it here. 

Esha Singh finishes with 581 points with 17 inner 10s. She shot 291 in precision and 290 in rapid. She had a perfect series in precision, but the inconsistency in the other series is likely to cost her a place in the final. 

Two-time medalist PV Sindhu wrote a heartfelt note on social media, reflecting on her defeat in the women's singles Round of 16 at the Paris Olympics. Sindhu also cleared the air around her future in the sport, saying she will continue to play badminton, albeit after a 'much-needed' break.

PV Sindhu will return from the Olympic Games without a medal for the first time in her career. Sindhu, the Rio Olympic silver medallist and the Tokyo bronze medallist, was knocked out in the pre-quarterfinals on Thursday, August 1 by He Bingjiao of China. 

Esha Singh dropped to 15th spot. She scored 97 in the third series to finish with 290 points in the rapid round. She earlier scored 291 points in the Precision round. She's currently on the 15th spot, however, the position is likely to change after other shooters also complete their respective rapid rounds.

After scoring 97 in the first series, Esha scores 96 in the second one with three perfect 10s and drops to 13th spot.

Esha has started series 1 in rapid round with 97 points and currently occupies tenth spot while Manu Bhaker is yet to shoot.

Manu Bhaker will be soon back in action as we take a look at the next few events on Friday. 

3:30 PM
Shooting: Women's 25m pistol qualification (rapid) - Manu Bhaker, Esha Singh
Judo: Women's +78kg quarter-finals (if qualified) - Tulika Maan

3:45 PM
Sailing: Women's Dinghy ILCA 6 (Race 3 and 4) - Nethra Kumanan

4:45 PM
Hockey: Men's Pool B - India vs Australia

Manu Bhaker is quietly confident of adding another medal in what has been a dream run at the Paris Olympics. However, the 22-year-old urged the nation to continue showering her with love even if she doesn't finish on the podium in the women's 25m pistol event, her favourite event.

"I hope the love stays. I will definitely try my best. I hope people are not disappointed or angry," Manu Bhaker said, as quoted by PTI news agency, while talking about her chances in the women's 25m pistol event. Manu won the 25m pistol bronze in Bhopal last year and has a gold in the team event from Baku last year.

Also Read: Manu Bhaker reacts to chances of 3rd Olympic medal in Paris 

Manu Bhaker finishes the precision round with 294 points and 7 inner 10s. She is at the third spot, tied on points with the top two shooters. Esha Singh is at the 10th spot. 

The rapid round of the women's 25m pistol event will get underway at 3:30 pm IST. 

Manu Bhaker series: 97, 98, 99

Esha Singh series: 95, 96, 100

India's Balraj Panwar finished with a time of 7:02.37, securing fifth place in Final D of the men's single sculls event at the Paris 2024 Olympics. This result concluded India's rowing campaign at the ongoing Summer Games. The 25-year-old Army man, who started rowing just four years ago, placed 23rd overall in his Olympic debut.

Manu Bhaker with a strong show in the precision round. She shoots 294 across 3 series in the precision round. with seven inner 10s. Major Veronika of Hungary is at the top spot with 294 ponts and 15 inner 10s while France's Camille Jedrzejewski is at the 2nd spot with 294 points and 13 inner 10s. 

Esha Singh has slipped out of top 8 at the moment. 

Manu Bhaker is making a strong case for finishing the precision round in the top 8. She shoots 98 in the second series of precision. 

Top start for Manu Bhaker in the precision round. She shoots 97 in the first series of 10 shots. Seven 10s in the first series. 

What a dominant performance from Cuba's Idalys Oritz. The four-time medallist and the heaviest judoka in the +78kg women's category needed just 28 seconds to win the bout. She wins the bout by Ippon. 

Manu Bhaker is finally in action. Can she join Esha Singh in the top 8? She begins the precision round with 3 9s and two 10s. Manu will shoot 3 series of 10 shots each in the precision round. Rapid round will be held in the evening. 

Tulika Maan is all set to take on Cuba's Ortiz Idalys, a four-time Olympic medalist. A tough bout for Tulika. She will be knocked out if she loses this. The repechage round is for the athletes who lose the quarter-final in this category. 

What are the rules of Judo? 

To score an ippon, one has to throw other on his back with impetus and control. However, if the throwing is done with lesser force then it results in a waza-ari. An ippon or two waza-ari is sufficient to win the match.

Anant Jeet of India has shot 23 out or 25 in the first round of men's skeet. He has slipped out of top 20. Early days in this event and Anant can recover. Keep in mind, only 6 out of the top 30 will qualify for the final. 

The athletes will now be instructed to unload their weapons and clear the tables, where they place the weapons and other shooting paraphernalia for the rest of the athletes. The shooters would also have to collect the empty shells which would be strewn about in front of the firing point.

Ankita shoots 10 and 10 & a 9 and 10 from Dhiraj and that is enough for India to beat the Indonesian pair and reach the quarter-final round. Both India and Indonesia scored 19 points each in the final round. However, the Indian mixed archery team, comprising Dhiraj Bommadevara and Ankita Bhakat, defeated Indonesia 5-1 to advance to the recurve archery quarterfinals. All the knockout matches are scheduled to take place in the evening.

Commonwealth Games silver medalist Tulika Mann will begin her campaign in women's +75kg category. She will take on Cuba's Idalys Ortiz in the Round of 32. Can the 25-year-old make a mark on the mat? 

It's a 9 & 10 from Ankita, a 10 & 9 from Dhiraj but the Indonesian pair levels with the same scoreline. India are leading 3-1 after the second set is tied at 38-38.

The Indonesian archer, aiming for a comeback, scores 19 points with the first two arrows.
 

You must all have read about the big boxing controversy in Paris Olympics. Here's an explainer on what's creating the furore on social media. 

At the heart of the controversy is the IOC's recent change in guidelines on testosterone levels. Athletes are no longer required to undergo hormone-level modifications to compete. Moreover, the IOC has held that testosterone was not always a determinant of physical advantage.

However, Imane Khelif, who has faced significant criticism on social media, including from the likes of author JK Rowling and tech billionaire Elon Musk, does not identify herself as transgender or intersex.

What is the truth? Read here.

Ankita Bhakat and Dhiraj take the first set 37-36 against Indonesia's duo. Both Indian archers score nine each. Diananda scores an eight, while Arif hits a nine. However, it doesn't change the outcome of the set, as their total score is 36.
 

Ankita Bhakat begins with a score of nine, and Dhiraj Bommadevara follows with a perfect bullseye. Following the Indian pattern, Arif hits a 10, while Diananda hits a 9.

Anant Jeet has not missed a shot in the first round. There are a total of 5 rounds in which each shooters gets 25 shots. The total out of 125 shots will determine the top 6 in the qualification. 

Ankita Bhakat and Dhiraj B will compete against Indonesia’s Diananda Choirunisa and Arif Pangestu in the mixed team 1/8 elimination round. India were ranked fifth with 1347 points in comparison to Indonesia’s 12th place finish with 1326 points in the mixed team qualification round.