Watch: Arif Khan, lone Indian athlete at Winter Olympics 2022, attends opening ceremony in Beijing

Lone Indian athlete, Arif Khan, carried the nationwide flag as he represented the nation on the Parade of Nations on the Beijing Winter Olympics opening ceremony on Friday, February 4. The dazzling opening ceremony was held on the iconic Bird’s Nest Stadium which additionally hosted the opening ceremony of the Summer Games in 2008.

Arif Khan, sporting a pink jacket, was carrying the Indian flag on the opening ceremony, accompanied by a few assist workers.Beijing Olympics gold medalist Abhinav Bindra took to social media to laud Arif Khan for representing India on the Winter Games.”From Kashmir to the Olympics! Really proud to see #ArifKhan, the only athlete representing India at #Beijing2022 carry the tricolor high!” he stated.India stated it will not ship its high diplomat in Beijing to the Winter Olympics after the honour of carrying the Olympic torch went to a Chinese soldier who was wounded in a lethal border conflict between the nations two years in the past.From Kashmir to the Olympics! Really proud to see #ArifKhan, the one athlete representing India at #Beijing2022 carry the tricolor excessive! pic.twitter.com/n3YGVsVsMd— Abhinav A. Bindra OLY (@Abhinav_Bindra) February 4, 2022
Arif Khan, an Alpine skier from Kashmir, will contest in Slalom and Giant Slalom occasions on February 13 and 16 in Beijing.The opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games begins on the National Stadium, also called the Bird’s Nest on February 4. The 31-year-old Alpine skier Arif Khan, the one entry from India, will compete within the Slalom and Giant Slalom occasions of the Beijing Olympics pic.twitter.com/OqfoL0ZYrb— Rabi Sankar Bosu (@BosuRabi) February 4, 2022
Arif Khan, 31, was launched to snowboarding on the age of 4 by his father and turned skilled 14 years in the past when he was 18 years previous. He has represented India in 127 worldwide occasions, competing primarily in Europe on a shoestring price range. Khan’s profession has been funded primarily by his household. His father has operated a tour firm and ski gear store in Gulmarg, Kashmir because the Nineteen Eighties. Arif Khan on the Beijing Winter Olympics opening ceremony (AFP Photo)In the build-up to the 2018 Games, unrest in Kashmir led to tourism drying up, forcing Khan to show to crowd funding in a determined, however in the end unsuccessful, try and maintain competing.”There was no tourism. We had no support from anywhere,” he had informed Reuters.”That was one of the reasons I needed to come up with crowdfunding, but … it didn’t turn out to be much. “Without funding, I could not attain my coaching, I could not meet up with the races.”I managed four results (to qualify for the Games) and I needed five. The fifth one, I fell short. If there was time, money … it could have been done.”This time round, Khan is supported by Indian conglomerate JSW Group’s sports activities arm, JSW Sports, which is protecting 40% of his prices. The Jammu and Kashmir authorities is protecting 10%, he stated, and he’s paying the remainder himself.Khan sealed his Olympic berth in slalom in Dubai in November and certified for big slalom with a 14th-placed end in Montenegro in December. His goal is to qualify within the high 30 of each occasions in Beijing.