The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced that it will provide ₹8.5 crore to the Indian Olympics Association (IOA) for the forthcoming Paris Olympics 2024. The 2024 edition of the quadrennial tournament is set to begin on July 26, where a total of 117 Indian athletes will participate for a podium finish across 16 sports. The announcement came from BCCI President Jay Shah on Sunday, July 21.
Shah took to X to announce, “I am proud to announce that the @BCCI will be supporting our incredible athletes representing #India at the 2024 Paris Olympics. We are providing INR 8.5 Crores to the IOA for the campaign. To our entire contingent, we wish you the very best. Make India proud! Jai Hind!”
It is to be noted that a total of 47 female and 70 male athletes will be part of the Indian contingent at the global spectacle. The track and field events have the highest number of Indian representatives with 29 athletes. Other than that a total of 21 athletes will participate in shooting, whereas Mirabai Chanu, a 2020 Tokyo Olympics silver medalist, will be the sole representative in weightlifting. In addition, equestrian, judo and rowing will also have one athlete participating from India.
Talking about hockey, 19 members will participate in the event, along with eight from table tennis, 7 from badminton, 6 each from wrestling, boxing and archery. A total of four players will participate in golf events, followed by three from tennis and two each from swimming and sailing.
In addition to this, it will be for the first time in history, that India will have a nearly 1:1 ratio when it comes to athletes and support staff. A total of 67 coaches and 72 other staff members will travel to Paris along with the Indian contingent.