Watch Out For These Debutants In Rio Olympics

1. Dipa Karmakar (Gymnastics)

Topping our list of debutants is Dipa Karmakar, the first Indian woman gymnast to qualify for the Olympics. She's also the first Indian to qualify for the mega event after 52 years. The 22-year old first shocked the world at the Commonwealth Games in 2014 when she attempted the rare and dangerous Produnova vault that won her a bronze medal in Glasgow. Having bettered it in the last year and a half, Dipa won a gold at the test event in Rio ahead of the Olympics to bag a berth.

Dipa is one of just three women in the world who perform the Produnova, and in fact has registered the highest score in the world: 15.300 (7.000 for difficulty and 8.300 for execution), causing the International Gymnastics Federation to call her a "world class gymnast" recently.

2. Dutee Chand (Track & Field, 100M)

At No. 2 is sprinter Dutee Chand who became the first Indian to qualify for the blue riband event of the Olympics, the 100m dash, after 36 years. The last time it was PT Usha at the Moscow Olympics in 1980. Dutee, who achieved the Olympic qualification mark in June, won a landmark case in the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in 2015, after she was dropped from the national team for having high levels of testosterone in her body.

3. Jitu Rai (Shooting)

Jitu Rai wasn't much talked about in 2012, and did not make it to the Olympic squad. But going into Rio 2016, Jitu Rai is one of India's biggest medal hopes. Going into the Olympics, the pistol shooter bagged a silver in the 10m air pistol event at the World Cup in Baku, which was his 6th overall medal. 2014 was his breakthrough year, when he won medals at every event he took part in - the World Cup, World Championships, Commonwealth Games, Asian Games - the kind of form that even saw him become World No. 1.

The 28-year old is easily one of the most exciting debutants to watch out for, having qualified for the 10m Air Pistol and 50m Pistol events.

4. Kidambi Srikanth (Badminton)

The world woke up and took notice of Kidambi Srikanth when he beat the legendary Lin Dan in his own backyard in 2014. The Hyderabadi has had other notable wins, but his China Open Super Series win is what he's best known for. And now he wants to be remembered, with a medal from his first Olympics. But with his ranking outside the top 8 at the moment, Srikanth is likely to have a tough opening at the Olympics

5. Women's Hockey Team

At No. 5 is the Indian women's hockey team who will be making their Olympic debut. The only time the Indian eves participated at the Olympics was in 1980 on an invitational basis. This time around a 5th place finish at the World Hockey League semi-finals helped them book a berth for Rio. But they're in an incredibly tough group, featuring Argentina, Australia, Great Britain, Japan and the US. With just the top 2 teams from the group moving to the semis, it's going to be a real test of character for the Indian girls