Golden Girl

Earlier this year, 22-year-old Dipa Karmarkar burst into public consciousness when she became the first Indian female gymnast to qualify for the Rio Olympics.

- Karishma Upadhyay

Dipa Karmakar

Olympic sport: Gymnastics

Category: Women’s Artistic Gymnastics.

But it was way back in July 31, 2014, when Dipa pulled off the Produnova in the individual competition at the Commonwealth Games (CWG) in Glasgow and became a sensation among gymnastic enthusiasts around the world.

At 20, Dipa was one of only five gymnasts to complete this near impossible vault. Named after the Russian Yelena Produnova who first attempted the high-risk manoeuver in 1999, the vault consists of a front handspring and two sommersaults. In the world of gymnastics, the word Produnova is uttered with fear and reverence.