3 Players who have represented India in judo at the Olympics ft. Avtar Singh

India's judo campaign at the Paris Olympics will begin with Tulika Maan as she takes to the mat for the women's 78 kg division. Maan is the sole Indian judoka at the 2024 Games, and will be hoping to claim India's first medal in the sport while in Paris.

The 25-year-old is a two-time Commonwealth Games champion, and finished fifth at both the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games, as well as the 2024 Asian Championships that were held in Hong Kong earlier this year.

As Tulika Maan readies to begin her bid for a medal finish at the Paris Olympics, here's a look back at the country's previous judokas who've represented India at the Games.

#3. Avtar Singh

Judo - Olympics: Day 5 - Source: Getty

Avtar Singh represented India at the 2016 Rio Olympics after a battle with a long and tumultuous qualification period. Born in Gurdaspur, Punjab, the judoka worked in his family’s farm as a youngster, with his first major international tournament being the 2015 Commonwealth Games. In Glasgow, he was beaten by the host nation’s Matthew Purssey, who went on to win silver.

Singh struggled to compete internationally in the 2015 - 2016 period, owing to a scarcity of funding. In 2016, he participated at the South Asian Games held in India, where he beat Nepal’sSanjay Maharjan of Nepal, Bangladesh’s MD Jahangir Alam of Bangladesh, and Afghanistan’s Mohammad Kakar on his way to the gold.

Two months later, he competed at the Asian Judo Championships, placing fifth overall, and qualifying for the 2016 Rio Olympics. At the Games, Avtar Singh had a dismal outing, exiting the event in the first round after losing to the Refugee Olympic Team's Popole Misenga.

#2. Sangeeta Mehta

At the 1992 Olympics, Sangeeta Mehta became the first Indian woman to represent the nation in judo, joining an otherwise all-male squad of Narinder Singh, Sandeep Byala, Rajinder Kumar Dhanger, and Cawas Billimoria. While Mehta failed to medal in Barcelona, she had an impressive career as a judoka nonetheless.

In 1988, the 57-year-old competited in both the 72+ kg weight class as well as the open category at the Asian Judo Championships that were held in Damascus, Syria. After an exceptional run, Mehta finished with bronze in both events. Three years later, in 1991, the Indian finished fifth at the Asian Judo Championships in Osaka, Japan.

#1. Narinder Singh

With his appearance at the 1992 Olympics, Narinder Singh became one of the first judokas to represent India at the Olympics. Four years later, he competed at the 1996 Games, making him the first person from the nation to qualify in the sport for two-consecutive Olympics.

At the 1992 Barcelona Games, he lost to Egypt's Ahmed El Sayed in the first round. Four years later, he beat Ireland's Sean Sullivan in his opening round match and fell short to Belarus’ Natik Bagirov.

Outside of his Olympic heroics, one of Narinder Singh’s biggest achievements came at the 1989 South Asian Games, where he won a gold medal. At the 1990 Commonwealth Games, India won a bronze alongside James Charles. The Judoka is a two time Commonwealth Championships gold medalist, having finished atop the podium in 1998 and 2006.

In 1999, Singh was awarded the Arjuna Award for his sporting excellence.