India’s heroes from Tokyo Olympics 2020 returned home to a rousing reception at the New Delhi airport on Monday (August 09). Thousands of fans along with eminent personalities and delegations from the Sports Authority of India (SAI) were present at the Delhi airport to welcome the players.

While star javelin thrower and India’s only gold medallist from the Tokyo Games, Neeraj Chopra received a grand welcome, wrestling medallists Bajrang Punia and Ravi Kumar Dahiya also had thousands of fans waiting to get a glimpse of them. Bajrang, who a bronze medal in the men’s freestyle 65kg category, was carried on the shoulders by his fans outside the airport.

On the other hand, Dahiya, who won a silver medal in the men’s freestyle 57kg category in Tokyo, was mobbed by fans for selfies at the airport. Both wrestlers continued the trend of India winning medals in wrestling at the Olympics and helped the country achieve its best-ever tally of seven medals this year.

Neeraj Chopra undergoes COVID-19 test at Delhi airport

India’s first-ever gold medallist in athletics in the history of the Olympics, Chopra struggled to get out of the airport as there were a plethora of fans waiting to celebrate his historic win with the 23-year-old. The star javelin thrower was seen undergoing a COVID-19 test at the airport after landing in the national capital from Tokyo.

Chopra scripted history by throwing the javelin a stunning 87.58m in the final to finish on top of the podium in Tokyo and become India’s only second athlete after shooter Abhinav Bindra to win an Olympic gold medal in an individual event. Bindra had won a gold medal in shooting at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Apart from Chopra, Bajrang, and Dahiya, boxer Lovlina Borgohain, who won a bronze medal, and the Indian men’s hockey team which claimed bronze after beating Germany were also welcomed to a rousing reception at the Delhi airport. India won seven medals at Tokyo Olympics 2020 to finish 48th on the medals tally.