Becoming the first Indian to acquire 1st Paris Olympic quota, Balraj Panwar finished third in the Single men scull event at the 2024 World Asian and Oceanian Olympic & Paralympic Qualification Regatta. At Chungju, South Korea on Sunday.
In the previous year, this 25-year-old Indian army man just barely missed out on a bronze after his initial appearance in Asian games. Held In Hangzhou, China.
But this time, he clocked 7:01.27 minutes, finishing third in the 2000m race and acquiring the quota. Usually in the men’s single scull category, only the top 5 make it to the Olympics berth.
As for the other players, in an event, the Indian pair of Ujjwal Kumar and Arvind Singh came in third place, at an event where the top two got to secure the quota.
Thus, India will have a sole entry in rowing at a quadrennial extravaganza scheduled on July 26th.