Dipa Karmakar, hailing from Northeaster State of Tripura, has made history by becoming the first Indian gymnast to win a gold medal at the Asian Senior Championships. Competing in the women’s vault event, the 30-year-old scored an average of 13.566 in the final held in Uzbekistan’s Tashkent. North Korea’s Kim Son Hyang and Jo Kyong Byol secured the silver and bronze medals with scores of 13.466 and 12.966, respectively.
Dipa, who narrowly missed a medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics by finishing fourth in the vault final, previously won a bronze medal in this event in 2015. Her triumph in Tashkent adds to Bharat’s gymnastic accolades, which include Ashish Kumar’s bronze in the individual floor exercise at the 2015 Asian Championships and Pranati Nayak’s bronze medals in the vault event in 2019 and 2020.
The Sports Authority of India celebrated her achievement on X, stating, “History created at The Asian Gymnastics Championship. Inspirational, Dipa! Congratulations on the Gold.” This victory is not her first groundbreaking accomplishment; she also won gold in the vault at the 2018 FIG World Cup in Mersin, Turkey, becoming the first Indian gymnast to win a gold medal at a global gymnastics event.
After serving a 21-month suspension for doping, Dipa returned to competition this year but is not in contention for the 2024 Paris Olympics. She placed 16th in the all-around category with a score of 46.166 on Friday. Despite finishing fourth in the vault final at the FIG Apparatus World Cup in Doha in April and skipping the World Cup in Cottbus, Germany, Dipa’s recent performances underscore her resilience and determination in the sport.
