Indian kabaddi star Pawan Sehrawat will replace shot put athlete Tajinderpal Singh Toor as the male flag-bearer for the Indian contingent at the Asian Games opening ceremony on Saturday.
According to the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), Toor was replaced due to technical issues. Pawan Sehrawat, an Asian Games 2022 gold medallist and Pro Kabaddi League star, will now carry the Indian flag alongside Manu Bhaker, who will continue as the women’s flag-bearer.
Bhaker, a double Olympic medallist, won two bronze medals at the Paris 2024 Olympics. She will compete in the women’s 10m air pistol, women’s 25m pistol and 10m air pistol mixed team events at the Asian Games.
At Paris 2024, Bhaker became the first athlete from independent India to win two medals at a single edition of the Olympic Games.
Sehrawat will also be aiming for another gold medal with the Indian men’s kabaddi team. India has dominated the men’s kabaddi competition at the Asian Games, winning gold in eight of the nine editions since the sport made its debut in 1990. India finished with bronze at the 2018 edition before reclaiming the gold medal at Hangzhou 2022 with a 33-29 victory over Iran.
Toor, meanwhile, will target a third consecutive Asian Games gold medal in men’s shot put. He won gold at the 2018 Jakarta Games and retained the title at Hangzhou 2022 with a throw of 20.36 metres.
In another development, India’s Quimcy Joaquim Dsouza narrowly missed out on a place in the Teqball women’s singles final. She lost 1-2 to Indonesia’s Sumaya in the semifinal after winning the opening set 12-7. Sumaya levelled the match with a 12-9 win in the second set before taking the decider 12-7.
Quimcy will now face Japan’s Yuina Sakamota in the bronze-medal match on September 20.
-Ani
