India pins hopes of Olympic glory on star athletes

Story by Cherylann Mollan - BBC News, Mumbai

India will be looking to top its previous medal tally of seven as its best athletes compete in the Paris Olympics 2024.

The games will kick off on Friday, with the opening ceremony being held along the scenic Seine river.

India has sent 117 athletes to participate in 16 of the competition's 32 sports, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has said.

The contingent includes previous Olympic winners such as javelin champion Neeraj Chopra and boxer Lovlina Borgohain.

PT Usha, one of India's legendary track and field athletes and president of the IOA, told Times of India newspaper that she was confident that India would have a "double digit medal tally" in the 2024 Olympics.

She added that efforts had been made to provide competing athletes with critical support staff, including mental conditioning experts and personal coaches to aid their performance. India will be looking to its top players to surpass its previous Olympic medal tally of one gold, two silver and four bronze won in Tokyo four years ago.

Here are some of the country's most promising players from the contingent:

Neeraj Chopra

India's most famous track-and-field athlete, Neeraj Chopra will be hoping to defend his Olympic gold in men's javelin throw from Tokyo 2020. Chopra has performed well in recent competitions, but could face a tough fight from Germany's Max Dehning who, in February, became the youngest javelin thrower to breach 90m. Chopra's best throw in Tokyo was 87.58m, while his overall best is 89.94m.