Tokyo Olympics 2020: Virat Kohli, Mithali Raj and Rohit Sharma join PM Narendra Modi's Cheer4India campaign

Well-known cricketers from team India, Mithali Raj, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and others joined hands with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in showing their support for the country’s contingent, which will fly to Tokyo for the Olympics. They have urged the people of the country to show full support to the athletes and also increase their morale. 

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) shared a video on its official Twitter account on Saturday. In the video, several stars such as Ajinkya Rahane, Harleen Deol, and Jemimah Rodrigues were also seen encouraging fans to say ‘Cheer 4 India’ for India’s Olympic-bound players. 

The tweet from BCCI read, “The BCCI proudly joins the Honourable Prime Minister of India Shri @narendramodi in extending our wholehearted support to the Team India Athletes @Tokyo2020. They have trained hard and are raring to go. Let us get together and #Cheer4India” 

The Olympics will be held behind closed doors between July 23 and August 8

The Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, was supposed to be held last year but had to be delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The highly anticipated event will begin on July 23 and will be happening under really strict health safety protocols. Over 100 athletes from India will be seen performing in Tokyo. 

Indian national Hockey team captain will be one of the flag-bearers for the Indian contingent at the opening ceremony and he will be accompanied by the famous London Olympics bronze medalist boxer MC Mary Kom. For the closing ceremony, which will take place on August 8, well-known Wrestler Bajrang Punia will be India’s flag bearer. 

“The flagbearers for the Indian contingent of Tokyo 2020 for the opening ceremony on July 23rd are Mary Kom and Manpreet Singh,” IOA President Narinder Batra said in an official letter. “The flagbearer for the Indian contingent at the closing ceremony on August 8 will be Bajrang Punia,” the letter further stated.

As far as the official participation numbers show, it has been revealed by IOA President Narinder Batra that the total contingent for the Olympics would be around 126 athletes and 75 officials. It was also stated that 56 percent of athletes are male while 44 percent are female. It has 76 quota places and will compete in about 85 medal positions. The entire contingent will leave for Tokyo on July 17. The entire event will take place behind closed doors from July 23 to August 8.