Fact-Check: Has CA Bhavani Devi Already Qualified for 2024 Paris Olympics?

Several social media users falsely claimed that Devi has already qualified for the Paris Olympics as of 5 February.

Fact-Check | Bhavani Devi has not yet qualified for the Paris Olympics.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

A post is doing the rounds on the internet to claim that fencer CA Bhavani Devi has already qualified for the upcoming 2024 Olympics that is going to be held in Paris, France, as of 5 February 2024.

What have users said?: Those sharing the post have claimed that Devi is the first Indian to secure her spot at the Olympics.

• Deputy Chief Minister of Rajasthan Diya Kumari shared a post congratulating Devi without mentioning the latter's qualification to Paris.

• Zee Tamil News has shared an image of Devi claiming that she has qualified for the upcoming Olympics.

You can view an archive of the post here.

(Source: X (formerly Twitter)/Screenshot)

(More archives of similar claims can be found here, here, here.)

Are these claims true?: No, Devi has not yet qualified for the 2024 Olympics.

• It should be noted that Devi became the first Indian fencer to qualify for the Olympics, when she qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

No information available in public domain: We searched about Devi's qualification for the Paris Olympics but did not come across any news reports. Team WebQoof further did not find any information available in the public domain that supported the viral claim.

Qualifications for fencing: According to the official website of Olympics, there are 60 quota places for individual qualification in fencing.

• It will be based on the International Fencing Federation (FIE) individual senior official ranking list by zone on 1 April.

• The ranking will be based on the points earned by the athletes between 3 April 2023 and 1 April 2024.

There are 60 places for individual qualification.

(Source: Olympics/Screenshot)

About Devi's qualification in 2020 Tokyo Olympics: She became the first Indian fencer to qualify for the Olympics for the individual sabre section.

• She bagged one of the two slots that were vacant for the Asia-Oceania region based on the world rankings as of 5 April 2021.

A genuine confusion?: The official handle of Olympic Khel had posted a video of Devi participating in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics with a caption that said, "The first Indian fencer to qualify for the Olympics! Bhavani Devi, everybody."

• Several users later picked this with a claim that the athlete had qualified for Paris Olympics.

• However, Olympic Khel's handle later deleted the post and have now shared the same video with a different caption.

Conclusion: It is clear that a misleading claim is doing the rounds on social media stating that fencer CA Bhavani Devi has already qualified for the 2024 Olympics.

(Editor's Note: The story will be updated when the final results of the fencing sports is declared.)

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