Indian rower Balraj Panwar’s Olympic dream suffered a setback on Saturday as he narrowly missed out on direct qualification to the quarterfinals of the men’s single sculls event at the Paris Olympics 2024.
Panwar, the lone Indian representative in the category, clocked 7:07.11s to finish fourth in his heat, behind New Zealand’s Thomas Mackintosh (6:55.92), Stefanos Ntouskos of Greece (7:01.79), and Abdelkhalek Elbanna of Egypt (7:05.06).
Despite the disappointment, Panwar still has a chance to advance to the semifinals or finals through the repechage round on Sunday.
The 25-year-old Armyman from Haryana’s Karnal district made a strong start, but Mackintosh quickly took a commanding lead. Panwar held on to third place for much of the race, but Elbanna eventually caught up and overtook him.
Panwar, who only began rowing four years ago, is only India’s second representative in the discipline at the Olympics. He narrowly missed out on a bronze medal at the Asian Games last year but secured an Olympic quota for Paris by finishing third at the Asian and Oceanian Rowing Olympic Qualification Regatta in South Korea earlier this year.
Panwar’s performance on Saturday was a testament to his hard work and determination. Despite the setback, he remains focused on his goal of reaching the quarterfinals and beyond.
