India expected to win olympic gold in at least five Disciplines

Still, this doesn't mean India stands no chance of winning at least a couple of those. In fact, there are five Olympic disciplines in which Indian athletes are expected to shine.

Shooting is India's Best Shot at Gold

India has won four Olympic medals in shooting, one of which was a gold. It happened in 2008, when Abhinav Bindra won gold in the 10-meter air rifle event, thus becoming the first Indian in history to achieve such a feat in individual sports. Bindra's win was also India's first gold since 1980.

He remains India's only individual Olympic gold medalist, but that could change easily this summer. India's shooting team looks as strong as ever, with fantastic performers in each of the 12 individual disciplines.

Divyansh Singh Panwar is the shooter India is putting hopes in the most. Despite still being a teenager, he's coming to Japan as world's #2 in two disciplines – 10-meter air rifle and 50-meter 3-positions.

Then, there's also Abhishek Verma who's currently #1 in the rankings for 10-meter air pistol. In the same discipline, another Indian is just behind Verma. The man in question is Chaudhary Saurabh.

India also has a favorite in women's shooting, with Elavenil Valarivan being the highest-ranked female shooter in the 10-meter air rifle discipline.

Mirabai Chanu Ready to Lift the Gold

India's Mirabai Chanu is one of the best female weightlifters in the world. In 2016, she messed it up in the Clean and Jerk part of the competition, ending up with no lift in that section. Fast-forward five years and she's coming to the Olympic Games as a world-record holder.

At the 2021 Asian Championships, Chanu broke the record in the Clean and Jerk section, lifting 119 kilograms.

India's Flag Bearer Believes Hockey is Coming Home

India is the nation with the most Olympic medals won in men's hockey. The current tally is 11 medals, eight of which are gold. That also makes India the country with the most Olympic golds in this sport.

Unfortunately, it's been a while since India's hockey team won a medal at the Olympic Games. The last time they did it was in 1980. The good news is that India's hockey could rise from the ashes this year.

Although they're only the #5 favorite in the eyes of bookmakers, with the odds of 10.00, Indian hockey players look ready to challenge the title.

The captain of India's field hockey team, Manpreet Singh, who's one of the two India's flagbearers (together with boxer Mary Kom), has said he believes his team could win an Olympic medal this summer.

According to Singh, they got the skills, as well as the motivation for such a feat. If they do win, the skipper said, they're going to dedicate the title to Indian Covid19 warriors.

Can Indians Wrestle Out a Gold Medal?

Seven Indian wrestlers will take part in this summer's Olympics. There could've been more (up to 18), but that shouldn't matter much as these seven are top-class.

This goes especially for Vinesh Phogat who's already won one gold medal this year. It happened at the 2021 Asian Wrestling Championship.

Apart from her, Indians should also feel hopeful about Bajrang Punia and Kumar Dahiya. Neither of them has done much at the Olympics, but both of these wrestlers are thought of as world elite.

India Turning into a Boxing Force at the Olympics

In 2008, Vijendar Singh became the first Indian to win an Olympic medal in boxing. For years later, Mary Kom won another medal for India in the first-ever Olympics that featured women's boxing.

The 2016 Olympics weren't as successful for Indian boxers. Only three of them qualified for the Games and none of them won anything.

However, five years later, India seems to have some real contenders in several boxing events. There will be nine Indian pugilists in Tokyo, three of whom really stand out from the crowd – Pooja Rani, Amit Panghal, and Mary Kom who's set her eyes on another medal.