Paris 2024 Olympics rowing: Balraj Panwar finishes fifth in quarter-finals; out of medal contention 

India’s Balraj Panwar finished fifth in his men’s single sculls quarter-final race at the Paris 2024 Olympics rowing competition on Sunday, which has put him out of medal contention.

Competing at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium, the Indian rower needed a top-three finish to progress to the semi-finals A/B and stay in the medal hunt.

The 25-year-old Panwar clocked 7:05.10, his best time at Paris 2024, but could only finish fifth in the quarter-final 4, entering semi-final C/D.

Neutral athlete Yauheni Zalaty (6:49.27), Lithuania’s Giedrius Bieliauskak (6:51.80) and Japan’s Ryuta Arakawa (6:54.17) claimed the top three finishes in quarter-final 4 to progress to the semi-final A/B.

The three fastest rowers from each of the four quarter-finals progressed to the semi-finals A/B while the remaining 12 rowers, including Panwar, moved to semi-final C/D to compete for places 13 to 24. Balraj Panwar will feature in the semi-final C/D on Wednesday.

On Saturday, Balraj clocked 7:07.11 to finish fourth among six rowers in heat 1, advancing to the repechage rounds. The top three rowers from heat 1 directly qualified for the quarter-finals. Rowers who finished from fourth to sixth made it to repechage.

On Sunday, Panwar achieved a time of 7:12.41 to finish second in the repechage 2 and qualify for the quarter-finals.

Panwar, who took up rowing just four years ago, was India’s only challenge in rowing at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

The Indian Army man earned his spot in the Paris 2024 contingent by winning a bronze medal at the Asian and Oceanian Rowing Olympic Qualification Regatta in Chungju, the Republic of Korea in April. He came fourth at the Asian Games in Hangzhou last year.

At Tokyo 2020, the men’s lightweight double sculls duo of Arjun Lal Jat and Arvind Singh finished 11th, logging India’s best finish in rowing at the Olympics.

Rowing events have been a part of the Olympics since Paris 1900 while India first competed in the sport at Sydney 2000 with Kasam Khan and Inderpal Singh pairing up for the men's coxless pairs event.