Saina Nehwal

Sport: Badminton

Nation: India

DOB: March 17, 1990

Career Highlights: With the Olympic hopes and dreams of more than one billion people resting on her every move, Nehwal is trying to become the second female Indian athlete to earn a medal and first since weightlifter Karnam Malleswari earned a bronze at the 2000 Sydney Games. A world junior champion in 2008 at the age of 18 and the first Indian to win a BWF Super Series title a year later, Nehwal rose to as high as No. 2 in the world in 2010. She has gained a major following domestically for a rigorous training regimen that requires her to practice at least six hours daily while also working for energy giant Bharat Petroleum. Nehwal reached the quarterfinals three straight times at the world championships from 2009-11, but there is concern that she may not be able to advance further in her Olympic debut. Since the start of 2011, her only titles have been two Swiss Open championships while she has exited in the second round or earlier in eight tournaments. It’s clear that Nehwal has been groomed to be a champion from a young age after earning a brown belt in karate and deciding to become a non-vegetarian in 2006 in order to gain strength. The question is whether her first major breakthrough will happen with the spotlight on her at the London Games.

Olympic History: None