India's in-form shooter Jitu Rai gave the country its first gold medal in the 17th Asian Games, cutting through a tough field to finish on top in the 50m pistol event in Incheon on Saturday.
The hosts will face arch-rivals Pakistan for a place in the final, the latter scoring 4-2 upset win over eight-time champions The Netherlands earlier in the day.
Sania Mirza's was officially named for the coveted Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award on Friday. The Hyderabadi lady is only the second tennis player to be nominated for the country's highest sport honour.
Impressed with the hockey team's showing at the recently-concluded Asian Games, Sports Minister Sarbanada Sonowal said the gold medal triumph could act as a "trigger" for more good things to come.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Tuesday, felicitated the medal winners from the recently-concluded Asian Games over a breakfast meeting at his residence and said sportspersons do as much for the country as political leaders.
It was gold rush for India on the opening day of the South Asian Games with the country's wrestlers, swimmers and weightlifters showing their regional dominance by making a near clean sweep of top honours on Saturday. India clinched 14 gold and five silver medals on a highly productive day to top the medals tally with an overall count of 19.Sri Lanka, despite having a higher overall medal count of 21, occupied the second spot in the table owing to alesser tally of gold medals (4). Wrestlers were the stars for India, grabbing as many as five gold medals followed by the swimmers who clinched four gold and three silver medals. The weightlifters added three gold medals to the tally after the cyclists had opened India's account with two gold and an equal number of silver medals in the morning. Three women and two male grapplers finished on top of the podium as the proceedings went on expected lines on the opening day of the competitions.
Vikas Krishan Yadav has learned from the bitterest experience that he can leave nothing to chance in the Olympic ring and it is a lesson the Indian boxer will carry with him to the Rio Games.
A pall of gloom shrouded the Pakistan hockey community after the national team failed to qualify for the Olympics.
She understands the emotion behind L Sarita Devi's tearful protest on the Asian Games podium but M C Mary Kom, who became the first Indian woman boxer to win gold at the mega-event, said faced with a similar crisis, she would have shown dissent differently.
Thailand's gold medal-winning golf team let their hair down with a shopping trip to Seoul on Monday, but behind the smiles and giggles the trio said they are deadly serious about their sport.
Saina Mirza and Saketh Myneni proved too strong for the Chinese Taipei combination of Hsien Yin Peng and Hao Ching Chan to win the gold in the mixed doubles final at the Asian Games.
- 'I hope our training on creating early pressure will be evident when we go into the competition'
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
The haul of 64 medals at the Commonwealth Games, in July-August, which included 15 gold, should act as the ideal springboard for the Indian contingent to better its medal tally at Guangzhou, China, four years ago.
Favourites India prevailed 3-2 over arch-rivals Pakistan to reclaim the Asian Champions Trophy hockey, presenting a perfect Diwali gift to the nation in Kuantan, Malaysia on Sunday. Goals from Rupinder Pal Singh (18th minute), Yousuf Affan (23rd) and Nikkin Thimmaiah (51st) helped India surmount the challenge from Pakistan, who rallied from two goals behind through strikes by Muhammad Aleem Bilal (26th) and Ali Shaan (38th) in the title clash of the fourth edition of tournament. This was the first time the teams were meeting in the final of a continental tournament since India dethroned Pakistan as the Asian Games champions in Incheon, South Korea in 2014.
Nirmala Sheoran produced a forgettable performance in the women's 400m semi-finals to finish among the bottom trio as India's disappointing show in the World Athletics Championships continued on the fourth day on Monday.
India cricket captain Virat Kohli and weightlifter Mirabai Chanu were on Monday recommended for Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna by the awards selection committee.
P V Sindhu became the country's first-ever woman silver medal winner in the Olympic Games after coming second best against world champion Carolina Marin of Spain in a pulsating clash for the gold in the badminton singles on Day 14 of competition.
Harish Kapadia is the only Indian to win mountaineering's most prestigious award.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
India's regional supremacy at the South Asian Games went unchallenged. The hosts were crowned overall champions for the 12th consecutive time after a record-breaking haul of 308 medals.
'I didn't go for the World Championships to see someone else take my place at the Olympics.'
Sports Minister Jitendra Singh was far from impressed as he took stock of India's preparations for next year's Commonwealth and Asian Games in a meeting with SAI officials here and expressed dissatisfaction with the progress made so far.
'It is important to keep new tricks in your bag to win at the biggest event of world sports.'
India captain Sardar Singh asserted that they have a lot to play for in the ongoing Hockey World League Semifinals.
After the euphoria over winning the gold medal at the Asian Games, Indian hockey suffered a major jolt on Tuesday with the resignation of the team's chief coach, Terry Walsh.
Local hero Kei Nishikori claimed his second Japan Open title on Sunday, overcoming familiar foe Milos Raonic 7-6(5), 4-6, 6-4 in the final under a closed roof at the Ariake Colosseum.
Somdev Devvarman stoutly defended his decision to skip the Asian Games, saying "it did not make any sense" playing in Incheon for three weeks at a time when he is striving to return to the top-100.
With the country's boxing administration in a shambles, the Sports Authority of India (SAI) said on Wednesday that the top pugilists may not be able to compete in the upcoming Asian Games under the national flag if the elections are not held as per schedule next month.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Saturday
Dope-tainted Narsingh Yadav admitted that his career would be over if the four-year ban imposed on him by the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) is not reviewed and said that the country should take up his case as India lost out on an Olympic medal in wrestling.
>There's still hope and plenty to play for, says Rediff.com's Aruneel Sadadekar.
A star-studded Indian shooting contingent will begin their Rio Olympics campaign on Saturday with in-form Jitu Rai hoping to launch the country's medal haul in an event which will also see his more illustrious senior colleague Abhinav Bindra aiming to end his glorious career on a high.
Sandeep Sejwal said the prize money on offer for every gold won is just too tempting.
A cracker of a contest is on the cards when a confident India takes on a resurgent Pakistan in the semi-finals of the Hero Champions Trophy hockey tournament, in Bhubaneswar, on Saturday.
India were left to rue a missed opportunity in tennis with Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna's losing in the semi-finals of the mixed doubles after Lalita Babar became the first woman in three decades to enter the final of a track event, on Day 8 of the 2016 Olympic Games, in Rio de Janeiro, on Saturday.
A day after his dramatic announcement to quit, Terry Walsh decided to continue as India's chief hockey coach after the country's top sports officials assured him that his concerns will be addressed in a fresh contract.
Having offered an unconditional apology for an emotionally-charged protest during the Asian Games medal ceremony, Indian boxer L Sarita Devi hoped that her outburst will ensure better judging at next month's World Championship in Korea.
Hockey greats Balbir Singh (Sr) and Ajit Pal Singh hailed India's Asian Games gold medal-winning effort but felt the players still have a mountain to climb to succeed at the World and Olympic level.
Ethiopian Tesfaye Abera won the Mumbai Marathon crossing the finish line in 2 hours, 9 minutes and 46 seconds on Sunday.
