Indian gymnast Dipa Karmakar, who missed out on a bronze medal in the 2016 Olympics by a whisker, announced her retirement on Monday. The 31-year-old made history as the first Indian female gymnast to compete at the Olympics, narrowly missing a bronze medal in the vault event by just 0.15 points.
"After much thought and reflection, I have decided to retire from competitive gymnastics. This is not an easy decision, but it feels like the right time," the celebrated Indian athlete said in a statement.
She further added, "Gymnastics has been at the centre of my life for as long as I can remember, and I am grateful for every moment—the highs, the lows, and everything in between."
Dipa Karmakar made history as the first Indian woman gymnast to compete in the Olympics. After reaching the finals of the women's vault event, she placed fourth with a score of 15.066, missing the bronze by just 0.150 points.
She brought gymnastics into the spotlight in India, showing that excellence in the sport isn't limited to nations like the USA or Russia.
In the same Olympics, Abhinav Bindra’s storied career was close to a dream ending. However, even a shooter of his calibre couldn’t escape the fate of finishing fourth, narrowly missing the bronze medal, eight years after his iconic gold at the Beijing Games.
Ahead of 2024 Paris Olympics, in a message to all athletes, Dipa Karmakar said, "One should have the willpower to achieve everything..."
Recalling how a former foreign coach had discouraged her from trying the difficult vault event in gymnastics, Karmakar asked every aspiring girl to turn every disadvantage and adversity in her favour, to fight any discrimination and make the motherland proud.
She is one of the only five women who have successfully landed the Produnova, which is one of the most difficult vaults in women's gymnastics.
A recipient of the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award in India, she was also presented with the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award in August 2016 for her performance in the Rio Olympics 2016.
(With inputs from agencies)
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