Aditi 29th, Diksha 49th as Kiwi wins gold in golf

Aditi Ashok.

Khel Today Bureau

Paris: Aditi Ashok just about squeezed into the Top-30 in Tied-29^th place but maintained that the Olympic dreams were very much alive. The 26-year-old Bengaluru star, who was competing in her third Olympics shot 4-under 68 with seven birdies against three bogeys but said she will come back again in Los Angeles.

Diksha Dagar of India in action.

India’s other star in the field, Diksha Dagar who was subdued following her mother’s back injury and hospitalization in a car accident in Paris a week before the Games, shot 80-78 over the weekend and ended T-49. She said she was confident of bouncing back in the AIG Women’s Open and also make a run for 2028 Olympics.

Overall It was a disappointing end for the two Indians, who were in Top-15 after the first day.

At the top Lydia Ko completed her Olympic medal collection with an Olympic gold. Ko won the silver medal in Rio de Janeiro. She won the bronze in Tokyo. The Paris gold also put the 27-year-old into the Hall of Fame for golf.

Esther Henseleit of Germany finished birdie-birdie for a 66 to make Ko work for it. She wound up with the silver. Xiyu Lin of China birdied the final hole for a 69 to win the bronze.

Aditi, who opened  her pro career with a win on Ladies European Tour in her rookie year at the Hero Women’s Indian Open at the age of 16, said, “I think today was probably the best day for me. I feel like I was hitting approach shots and I was holing putts, both were working, so I think that’s where the seven birdies came from. Also, conditions were a little better today. Not as windy. So it was easier to manage today than yesterday.”

At 26 she has age on her side, she feels She said she feels she will get some more attempts at the Olympic Games and will try to get back to the team in 2028, when the Olympics travel to Los Angeles.

For Nelly Korda, Rose Zhang and Morgane Metraux, it was a day to forget. All of them were in range early. All of them fell back with a double bogey or worse.