‘Nightmare’ for Sreeshankar, ruled out of Paris Olympics

New Delhi, April 18

Ace Indian long jumper Murali Sreeshankar has been ruled out of the Paris Olympics after sustaining a knee injury during training that would require a surgery, which will also see him miss the entire 2024 season.

Sreeshankar, an Asian Games and Commonwealth Games silver medallist, had made the cut for the Paris Olympics after recording an 8.37 metres jump en route a silver medal at the 2023 Asian Athletics Championships.

The 25-year-old was slated to begin his season with back-to-back Diamond League meetings in Shanghai/Suzhou and Doha on April 27 and May 10, respectively. But he sustained an injury during training on Tuesday, ending his Olympics dream.

“Unfortunately, in what feels like a nightmare, but is a reality, my Paris Olympics dream is over,” Sreeshankar said in a social media post. “I suffered a knee injury during training on Tuesday, and all the tests and consultations later, it’s been decided that I would need surgery, ruling me out of the one single thing I’ve chased relentlessly all these years. All my life, I had the courage to look at a setback in the eye, accept situations I can’t change, and work hard at dictating the outcomes of those I can,” he added. — PTI

Olympics selection trials for Indian shooters set to begin

New Delhi: Olympian Manu Bhaker and Esha Singh will be firm favourites to top the Olympic trials in 25m sports pistol when the process to select India’s pistol and rifle squad for 2024 Paris gets underway at the Karni Singh Range here tomorrow. The opening day of the Olympics Selection Trials 1&2 (OST) will also see Anish Bhanwala and Vijayveer Sidhu establish their supremacy in the 25m rapid fire event in the five-shooter field. The Trial 1 finals in both women’s sports pistol and men’s rapid fire events will be held on April 20, while the Trial 2 finals will take place on April 22. Shooters topping the trials will book their tickets to the Paris Olympics.