World Athletics Keep Mum on Abha Khatua Exclusion From Paris Olympics Squad; Shot Putter To Return Home

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World Athletics is maintaining silence on Abha Khatua's exclusion from their list of qualified athletes for the Paris Olympics 2024. The Indian shot put national record holder qualified for Paris through World Rankings but will now return home from the national camp in Poland.

Khatua departed for Spala on July 11 with her teammates, joining the base for India's Olympic-bound athletics contingent. However, the following day, she was absent from the list of track and field Olympic participants published by World Athletics.

The 29-year-old shot putter was ultimately not included in the Indian contingent of 117 approved by the sports ministry. The track and field team now consists of 29 members, rather than the 30 initially announced by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI).

There has been no official word on whether her name was dropped due to injury, a doping violation, or another technical issue. Repeated attempts to reach Khatua have been unsuccessful, and officials have stonewalled queries regarding her absence. An AFI official mentioned that the AFI was not aware of any issue with her.

MyKhel contacted World Athletics via email for an official statement on the matter but the body is yet to respond on the matter. However PTI reported that the governing body has refused to comment on the matter, saying, "World Athletics has a long-standing practice not to provide specific comment on individual selection decisions."

Abha Khatua was among the surprise of the season when she broke the national record at the Federation Cup in April in Bhubaneswar with a gold-winning throw of 18.41m and presented her case for Paris Olympics.

Even then, she remained outside the qualification bracket until her gold-winning throw of 17.53m at the National Inter-State Championships, a Category A event unlike the Federation Cup's Category F status. This performance elevated her to 21st in the world rankings with 1059 points, securing her Olympic qualification.

Thirty-two athletes will compete in the women's shot put event in Paris. Fifteen qualified automatically by surpassing the 18.80m mark, while 17, including Khatua, made the cut through world rankings.

Last year, despite crossing the 18m mark twice in less than three months, Khatua did not make it to the Hangzhou Asian Games, with no explanation given for her exclusion despite her strong performances.

As of now, the mystery around Abha Khatua's exclusion from the Paris Olympics squad remains unresolved, leaving many questions unanswered about her Olympic journey.