[Year in Review 2021] Meet the women sportspersons who made India proud this year and set the bar high

What does it take for women to succeed in sports? A lot of grit and gumption, hard work, and consistency, as shown by Indian women this year at the Tokyo Olympics and other sporting events. Perhaps the only difference that sets them apart from male athletes is that women have to overcome an additional battle of social stigma but they made sure not to lose sight of victory. 

From PV Sindhu clinching her second Olympic medal to parathlete shooter Avani Lekhara coming home with two Paralympics medals, here is a look at some of the women athletes who played hard and inspired Indians around the world. 

Saikhom Mirabai Chanu

Mirabai Chanu fuelled India’s fervour by opening the country’s account at the Tokyo Olympic Games as she clinched silver in the 49 kg weightlifting category. The 26-year-old is also a two-time Commonwealth Games gold-medallist and has claimed India’s first World Weightlifting Championships gold in 22 years in 2017.

However, the road to success wasn’t easy. Mirabai also battled depression when she could not log a single legitimate lift at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Hailing from Nongpok Kakching village in Manipur, the athlete says her dream came true at the Tokyo Olympics.

In July this year, she was appointed the Additional Superintendent of Police in the state police department, along with the promise of a reward of Rs 1 crore. 

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PV Sindhu

Shuttler PV Sindhu made India proud for the second time at the Olympics by clinching a bronze after a straight-game win over ninth world ranker He Bing Jiao of China. Among her many firsts include being the only woman in India to win Badminton World Championship in 2019 and to bag two Olympic medals, the first being silver in the 2016 Rio Games.

The reigning world champion was named the BBC Indian Sportswoman of Year and TOISA Sportsperson of the year in 2020. More recently, Sindhu was appointed as a member of the Badminton World Federation’s (BWF) Athletes’ Commission.

Bhavina Patel

Parathlete Bhavina Patel became the second woman to get a medal at the Paralympics as she clinched silver at women’s Class 4 Table tennis during the Summer Paralympics in Tokyo this year.

Born in 1986 in Mehsana district of Gujarat, Bhavina was diagnosed with polio when she was just 12 months old and remained confined to a wheelchair for most of her life. She engaged with the sport for fun and fitness but winning bronze at a national level club event left her hoping for more.

In 2011, she reached the world number two ranking after winning silver at the PTT Thailand Open and in the women’s singles Class 4 at the Asian Para Table Tennis Championships in Beijing in 2013.

Avani Lekhara

Avani Lekhara scripted history as the first para-athlete to win two Paralympic medals – winning gold and bronze in 10m and 50m rifle events, respectively. She was later honoured with the "Best Female Debut" at the 2021 Paralympic Awards.  

At ten years old, Avani met with a car accident when her family was travelling from Jaipur to Dholpur that damaged her spinal cord and left her paralysed below the waist. Wheelchair-bound, she was introduced to the sport of shooting by her father and later found inspiration in former shooters Suma Shirur and Abhinav Bindra.

Now juggling sports with an intensive five-year law degree, Avani is also the ambassador of the government’s Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao campaign.

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Lovlina Borgohain

Twenty-four-year-old Lovlina Borgohain swiftly rose through the ranks to become a formidable boxer. In a short career spanning four years, she has bagged the World and the Asian championships, and stole the light at the Olympics as she clinched a bronze at the Tokyo Games this year. The Arjuna awardee also won a bronze in Welterweight at the 2021 Dubai Asian Championships. 

Hailing from Baromukhia village in Assam, Lovlina battled poverty and social stigma as a girl pursuing a career in professional boxing to become an Olympic medalist today. Armed with her father’s unrelenting support despite financial struggles, Lovlina and her sisters took up Muay Thai, a form of kickboxing, but found her calling in boxing.

Priya Malik

Amid a slew of news about Indian athletes clinching Olympic medals from Tokyo, Priya Malik won a gold medal at the 2021 World Cadet Wrestling Championship in Budapest, Hungary. Priya beat Belarus rival Kseniya Patapovich 5-0 in the 73 kg weight category.

Daughter of Indian army veteran Jayabhagwan Nidani, Priya Malik grew up in Jind, Haryana and has won several medals, including the Khelo India award in Pune and the 17th School Games in Delhi in 2019. 

Indian women’s hockey team

In 2021, Indians definitely had a Chak De! India moment, thanks to the Indian women’s hockey team who marked Indian women’s first entry to the Olympic semifinals.

Led by captain Rani Rampal, the 16-member team including vice-captain Savita Punia, Deep Grace Ekka, Sushila Chanu Pukhrambam, Monika, Nikki Pradhan, Navjot Kaur and Vandana Katariya and debutants Gurjit Kaur, Udita, Nisha, Neha Goyal, Navneet Kaur, Sharmila Devi, Lalremsiami, and Salima Tete.

Although the team did not reach the finals, their achievement set the bar for women’s hockey in India.