The Dakar 2026 Summer Games starting on Saturday will be an opportunity for 17 Indian athletes to show their promise. New Delhi: Youth Olympic Games offer glimpses of future champions. Manu Bhaker, Lakshya Sen, HS Prannoy are among several star Indian sportspersons who unveiled their potential at the Youth Olympics in the previous three editions. They all made the most of their cracking start on the international stage.
Archer Gatha Khadke already knows the heat of battle at the very top. She will carry immense confidence into her game, and a medal at the Youth Olympics will put her in the right mindset to aim high. In the three editions starting in 2010, India have won 23 medals at the Youth Olympics. However, compared to 46 athletes from the last edition in 2018, India are sending a team of 17 athletes in 11 disciplines. At the senior World Championships last year, she made it to the last-16 stage, losing to Lim Si-hyeon of South Korea, who won three gold medals at the Paris Olympics.
Gatha was part of the Indian team with seasoned Deepika Kumari and Ankita Bhakat that gave a tough fight to Olympic champions South Korea losing in the bronze medal match last year.
Promising Syndrela Das has qualified in table tennis. She came to spotlight after beating Manika Batra in Ultimate Table Tennis League, and then completed a double at the National Ranking Table Tennis Championships in Kanpur winning the U19 and women’s singles titles. She was also part of the Indian team at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.
