Just before the start of 2016, India's premier gymnast Dipa Karmakar had spoken to Scroll.in about her plans for the upcoming year.
"I am waiting for a letter from the sport's governing body informing me that I have been selected for the 2016 Rio Olympics qualifier," she said. "If I am chosen, it will be a huge boost for me. With everyone's blessings, I will definitely try my best to qualify for the Olympics and win a medal."
Four months later, Karmakar got her chance. After being put on second reserve for the qualifying event, she was informed that she had been shortlisted in the final list of participants.
In 2015, Karmakar had finished fifth at the World Artistic Championships. It was an incredible achievement. She became the first Indian gymnast to qualify for the final round, but unfortunately, the fact that she did not manage to finish in the top three robbed her of a direct Olympic spot.
There will be no looking back in regret for the 22-year-old from Tripura now. At the test event in Rio on Sunday, Karmakar garnered a total score of 52.698 points in the qualifying event. It was her strong performance in the Produnova vault, considered among the most difficult manoeuvres in gymnastics, that helped her notch up an impressive point tally.
But the icing on the cake was when the International Federation of Gymnastics released its final list of participants who had qualified for the Rio Olympics in August. The 79th name read Dipa Karmakar and the diminutive 22-year old from Tripura had just made history, becoming the first-ever Indian woman gymnast to qualify for an Olympics event and the first Indian gymnast to qualify for an Olympics event since 1964.
It is one of those glorious tale of sporting triumphs. Karmakar ensured that she achieved exactly what she wanted to do. Now that she has achieved her dream of qualifying for the Olympics, few would bet against her going to Rio and winning a medal there.
