Commonwealth Games Champion Eldhose Paul Out of Paris Olympics With Injury

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In a heartbreaking turn of events, Indian triple jumper Eldhose Paul, who is also the reigning Commonwealth Games champion, announced his withdrawal from the race to qualify for the Paris Olympics 2024 due to a significant injury.

The athlete was expected to take a last attempt at Paris Qualification at the ongoing National Inter-State Athletics Championships in Panchkula. All his hopes of making the Paris Olympics now lay to waste as the 27-year-old track and field athlete took to social media to confirm his heel bone injury.

"I wanted to take a moment to share a personal update with all of you...," shared Paul. "Unfortunately, I sustained an injury during the last competition I took part in, which occurred towards the end of the qualifying period. After returning to India and undergoing further evaluation, it's been concluded that I have a fracture in the calcaneus (heel bone) that requires immediate attention."

Paul sustained the injury during his last competition at the JBL Jump Fest in Alzbetina Street, Košice. Despite clinching a bronze medal with a jump of 16.45 meters, the aftermath of the event proved devastating. Upon returning to India and undergoing further evaluation, it was determined that Paul had fractured his calcaneus (heel bone), necessitating immediate medical attention.

"This news means that my Olympic journey ends here. Words cannot express how heartbreaking this is for me. Representing my country this year would have been the pinnacle of my career. However, as athletes, we understand that injuries are part of the sport and I choose to look forward with optimism. As I take this time to heal and recover, I am reminded that this is not the end of my story. Thank you for being part of my journey. Your support means everything," he wrote further.

While Eldhose didn't reveal the timeline of his recuperation, medical experts suggest the injury of such kind may take months to recover and may need surgery as well. As per the Orthopaedic Trauma Association (USA), a heel bone injury "takes about three to four months to heal" with or without surgery.

"If you don't need surgery, you'll still need to limit movement and weight on the foot. Surgery might be needed if the break is inside a joint or if the bone's shape has changed... If the bone broke through the skin or is close to doing so, you'll almost always need surgery," OTA wrote on its website.

Eldhose Paul one of India's promising prospects for securing a berth at the Paris Olympics. The Kerala-based athlete, whose personal best is 16.99m (in 2022) has been trying to breach the qualification mark of 17.22 meters for a while now but has been struggling to breach the 17m mark.

The National Inter-State Athletics 2024 was his last opportunity to either breach the Olympic qualification mark or improve his ranking to within the top 32. He is currently ranked 47th in World Athletics' Olympic rankings.

Despite Paul's ouster, national record holder Praveen Chithravel and CWG silver medallist Abdulla Aboobacker remain in the hunt for Paris berth but alike Eldhose they have been struggling to breach the direct qualification mark or go past the 17m mark at least.