India's only rower Balraj Panwar still remains in the race for the medal in the ongoing Paris Olympics 2024. His efforts went in vain, as he missed out on direct qualification to the quarterfinals of the men’s singles Sculls event on July 27. He finished fourth in heat one of the men’s competition.
Balraj will now try to reach the semi-finals or finals through repechage. The 25-year-old India's Olympic debutant completed the race in 7:07.11. New Zealand's Thomas Mackintosh (6:55.92), Greece’s Stefanos Ntouskos (7:01.79), and Egypt’s Abdelkhalek El-Banna (7:05.06) were the top three rowers. The top three rowers from each heat qualify for the quarterfinals.
Balraj finished fourth in the 2022 Asian Games and won the bronze medal in the Asian and Oceanian Olympic Qualifications held in Korea.
Balraj started strongly as Mackintosh surged ahead to establish a significant lead early on. The Indian rower was in third place after a fast start, but Elbanna quickly overtook him. At the first checkpoint of 500 meters, Elbanna finished in 1:41.94, with Balraj just behind at 1:43.53. The Indian rower intensified his efforts and put pressure on the Egyptians.
By the time they reached the 1000-meter mark, both rowers remained close, with Mackintosh having gained a clear advantage over the rest of the field. Although it appeared Elbanna might secure a comfortable victory, Balraj's increased pace ensured that the final 100 meters would be intensely competitive, with all the pressure on Elbanna.
In the end, Balraj missed out on finishing the 2000-meter heat in 7:07:11, as Elbanna managed to finish 2 seconds ahead of him.
What happens in Repechage
In the initial round of heats on the track, athletes who finish in the automatic qualifying positions (such as the top 3 finishers) will secure their advancement to the second round. Those who do not automatically qualify can still have another opportunity to advance to the semi-finals by competing in repechage heats. The new repechage format will replace the former system; the athletes will now advance through the fastest times in addition to top placings in the heats.
