It started with a bang, tapered off in the middle and then ended with the kind of spectacular fireworks that make historic events grand. India was quite literally on a roller-coaster during the Tokyo Olympics.

So, there was the first medal in track-and-field which also happened to be the first gold in 13 years and the first medal in hockey in 41 years. And it all happened at the Games which carried the tag of troubled long before the opening ceremony, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic.