Tokyo Olympics: Gymnast Pranati Nayak's profile, rankings, opponents, form guide

Pranati Nayak qualified for the Tokyo Olympics following reallocation of quota places under the continental championships criteria. 

Published : Jul 20, 2021 20:19 IST

Pranati Nayak at the Senior Asian Artistic Gymnastics Championship.
Pranati Nayak at the Senior Asian Artistic Gymnastics Championship.
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Pranati Nayak at the Senior Asian Artistic Gymnastics Championship.

Pranati Nayak

Artistic gymnastics: All-around, Main event: Vault

Form guide: 2019: Bronze in Asian championships, Mongolia; Participated in the World championships, Germany; Gold in individual all-around in the National championships, Pune.

Pranati Nayak, coming from a humble family in Karkai village under Pingla block of West Bengal's West Medinipur district, took up gymnastics as a six-year-old.

The talented youngster got into the Sports Authority of India Eastern Centre in Kolkata in 2003 and found an able coach in Minara Begum, who not only guided Pranati in the sport but also provided all sorts of support, including financial, for 16 years until her retirement.

Pranati showed her talent, winning medals in the National sub-junior championships in the mid-2000s. She continued her good work and claimed medals in National junior championships as well.   

Pranati shone at the elite level, securing multiple medals in the National championships, National Games and Federation Cup from 2012 onwards and established herself as one of the leading gymnasts of the country.

The year 2019 proved important for Pranati as she emerged as the all-around individual champion – with gold in table vault, beam, silver medal in team, uneven bars and bronze medal in floor – in the National championships in Pune. She also achieved her biggest success, bagging a bronze medal in vault at the Asian championships in Mongolia.

She participated in several elite events, including the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games in 2014 and 2018, the Asian championships in 2017 and 2019, the World Cup in 2018 and the World championships in 2014, 2017 and 2019.

Finally, 26-year-old Pranati, following in the footsteps of her idol Dipa Karmakar, qualified for the Tokyo Games following reallocation of quota places under the continental championships criteria and will be the second Indian to make it to the Olympics in the sport.

Pranati, now coached by Lakhan Sharma, will try to give her best in her pet event vault in Tokyo and achieve a respectable position.

Main rivals: Simone Biles (USA), Uchimura Kohei (Jpn), Tang Xijing (Chn) and Angelina Melnikova (Rus).

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