Aditi Ashok becomes first female Indian golfer to qualify for Tokyo Olympics
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New Delhi, June 30: In a positive development, Aditi Ashok, the lone female Indian golfer will represent the country at the Tokyo Olympics, beginning in less than a month. This comes as she finished 45th on the qualifying list.
Now, Aditi has joined Anirban Lahiri and Udayan Mane to make it a team of three golfers to Tokyo. Lahiri also like Aditi, will be participating in his second straight Games after Rio, 2016. Aditi and Lahiri figured in the first list of 60 players, of whom some are likely to skip the Games.
"I still think of Rio 2016 like it was only yesterday. To have the honor of playing for India is beyond exciting. I am privileged to have the opportunity to represent my country and my sport at the Games again," the golfer tweeted.
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After the qualification, Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju, "I congratulate Aditi Ashok for becoming the 1st female Indian golfer to qualify for #Tokyo2020 after the final Olympic rankings were released today. She is going to be playing her 2nd Olympics."
Mane made the cut following the withdrawal of Emiliano Grillo of Argentina. His entry will be confirmed on July 6 by the IGF and by then it will also be known who all are withdrawing from the women’s section. The next step is for the International Golf Federation (IGF) to send confirmation of the qualified athletes to the National Olympic Committees.
The NOCs will then confirm use of allocated quota places to the IGF by July 1 and the IGF, in turn, will re-allocate all the unused quota places before the Tokyo 2020 sport entries deadline on July 5.
The Olympic golf competition for men will be held at the Kasumigaseki Country Club from July 29 to August 2, while the women will play at the same course a week later from August 4 to 7. It will be a four-round 72-hole affair with no cuts for the starters.