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Independent India continued its glorious years in men’s hockey and won individuals medals in the 20th century. read more
 "Hockey dominance, individuals medals for independent nation")
Leander Paes (R) won the bronze medal in singles tennis at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. AFP
With 33rd Sumer Olympic Games in Paris fast approaching, we move to the second edition of a three-part series revisiting India’s performance at the world’s biggest sporting event. Part 1 looked at how India performed at the Olympics when it still was part of the British Empire. In the second part, we take a look at independent India’s performance in the 20th century.
India have accumulated a total of 35 Olympic medals, which seems underwhelming considering the large population. This substantial populace would typically imply a sizeable talent across various sports. Out of these medals, more than half were earned within the last four editions, indicating a consistent improvement in recent times.
India achieved its most remarkable Olympic performance in Tokyo three years ago, securing seven medals, including a rare individual medal, a gold at that, in athletics.
India’s journey at the Modern Olympic Games came under the umbrella of the British rule with Norman Pritchard winning individual medals before the hockey team heralded an era of domination.
That brutal dominance and sheer ruthless nature of the Indian men’s hockey team at the Olympics, helmed by the genius of Major Dhyan Chand, continued after 1947.
India’s performance at the Summer Olympics between 1948 and 2000 was a journey marked by moments of glory, particularly in field hockey, interspersed with periods of limited success in other sports. This era saw India transition from a newly independent nation to a developing country with growing aspirations in the international sporting arena.
London 1948: India beat Britain to win hockey gold
The 1948 London Olympics marked India’s first appearance as an independent nation. It was a momentous occasion, with the Indian hockey team continuing its pre-independence dominance. Led by Kishan Lal, India defeated hosts Great Britain 4-0 in the final, securing the gold medal. This victory was particularly sweet as it came against the former colonial rulers, Great Britain, on their home turf. Apart from hockey, India’s performance in other sports was modest, reflecting the country’s limited sports infrastructure and focus at the time.
Helsinki 1952: KD Jadhav wins first individual medal
At the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, India secured a bronze medal in wrestling through KD Jadhav in the bantamweight category. This was a landmark achievement as it was independent India’s first individual Olympic medal.
The hockey team continued their golden run by clinching another gold medal - their fifth in a row. India showcased their superiority by defeating the Netherlands 6-1 in the final. Balbir Singh Sr. was the star of this campaign, scoring five goals in the final.
Melbourne 1956: Hockey’s golden run continues
The golden run in men’s hockey continued at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, with India claiming their sixth consecutive gold medal.
The team, led by Balbir Singh Sr., defeated Pakistan in the final. This period solidified India’s reputation as the undisputed kings of hockey.
The men’s football team had a stellar run to the semi-finals. Coached by Syed Abdul Rahim, popularly known as “Rahim Saab”, the team reached the semi-finals after a surprise victory over hosts Australia. Neville Steven Joseph D’Souza scored a hat-trick, take India to a convincing 4-2 win against the Socceroos at the Olympic Park. They went down to Yugoslavia 4-1 in the semi-finals and 3-0 to Bulgaria in the bronze medal match.
Rome 1960: India’s golden run ends
The 1960 Rome Olympics marked a slight dip in India’s hockey fortunes, with the team settling for silver after losing to Pakistan in the final. This was India’s first defeat in Olympic hockey since entering the competition in 1928. Despite this setback, hockey remained India’s strongest Olympic sport.
In athletics, Milkha Singh faced heartbreak in 400m. The Indian sprinter finished second in all early rounds, improving his time on each instance. In the final, he finished fourth with a time of 45.6 seconds - a decision that required a photo-finish.
Tokyo 1964: Back to golden ways
India reclaimed its hockey gold at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, defeating Pakistan in a closely contested final. This victory was particularly significant as it came against India’s arch-rivals and helped restore the nation’s pride in its hockey prowess.
Mexico City 1968, Munich 1972: Bronze in hockey
The 1968 Mexico City Olympics saw India secure bronze in hockey, marking the beginning of a gradual decline in the country’s dominance in the sport. The high altitude of Mexico City was cited as one of the factors affecting the team’s performance.
At the next edition, in Munich, India men’s hockey team won the bronze for a second straight Olympics. However, this Olympics is often remembered for India’s missed opportunities in other sports, particularly 1970 Asian Games silver medallist Sriram Singh’s fourth-place finish in the 800m, narrowly missing out on a medal.
Even though he was eliminated in the heats, Sriram’s time of 1:47.7 bettered Jimmy Crampton’s Asian record. It must be noted here that prior to the 1972 Games, he had never run on synthetic tracks.
Montreal 1976: India’s hockey medal run ends
The 1976 Montreal Olympics marked a low point in India’s Olympic history, with the hockey team failing to secure a medal for the first time. This shocking result led to much soul-searching in Indian sports circles.
Shriram Singh, who had bowed out in the heats in the previous edition, reached his Olympic high in Montreal. The qualifying round, semi-final, and final took place on consecutive days. In the first race, he set a new Asian record by clocking 1:45.86. In the semis, he finished in fourth place with a time of 1:46.42.
Entering the final, Singh surged ahead at the 300-meter mark, seizing the lead with a time of 50.85, narrowly ahead of Cuba’s Alberto Juantorena’s 50.90. Juantorena caught up at the 550m mark and ultimately clinched victory in a world record time of 1:43.50. Singh gradually lost ground in the last stretch, crossing the finish line in seventh place with a time of 1:45.77. Juantorena would credited Sriram’s aggressive pace-setting for his record-breaking performance.
Moscow 1980: Hockey team wins gold
For the first time since 1956, Olympics had fewest representation with only 80 countries sending athletes. Led by the United States, 66 countries boycotted the Games because of the Soviet-Afghanistan war.
Amid flurry of absences, India men’s hockey team won gold once again but they faced none of the powerhouses on their way registering lopsided wins against Tanzania (18-0) and Cuba (13-0) before beating Spain 4-3 in the final.
This gold was India’s eighth and remains their last Olympic gold in hockey.
Los Angeles 1984: Female athletes shine
Like the Moscow Games four years ago, the Los Angeles edition was boycotted by 14 Eastern Bloc countries but still hosted 140 nations, a record at the time, with over 6,500 athletes.
The Games didn’t see India win a medal but saw the emerge of female athletes led by track and field athlete PT Usha. Like Milkha Singh’s disappointment a couple of Olympics ago, this time it was Usha’s moment of heartbreak. Usha missed out on the bronze medal in 400m hurdles by one-hundredth of a second.
Shiny Abraham reached the semifinals of 800m with a personal best of 2:04.69 seconds and became the first Indian woman to reach the semi-finals of an Olympic event. Although, she finished last in the semis.
Later, the women’s 4x400m relay team of PT Usha, Shiny Abraham, MD Valsamma and Vandana Rao made it to the finals. They finished last but set an Asian record in the process.
Seoul 1988, Barcelona 1992: Medal-less Games
India had a drab consecutive Olympics in Seoul and Barcelona in 1988 and 1992. In Korea, the famed hockey team failed to make it past the group stage and the results were equally dire for rest of the contingent.
In Spain, four years later, India returned empty handed again. Once again, the hockey team bowed out in the group stage. Leander Paes made his debut in tennis where he and Ramesh Krishnan reached the quarters in the doubles.
Atlanta 1996: Paes ends dry spell
The 1996 Atlanta Olympics marked a turning point with Leander Paes winning a bronze medal in tennis men’s singles, ending India’s 16-year medal drought. This was a significant achievement as it showcased the potential of Indian athletes beyond traditional sports like hockey.
Paes became the first Indian in 44 years to win an individual medal. The legendary tennis player lost in the semi-finals to eventual gold medal winner Andre Agassi and faced Brazil’s Fernando Meligeni in the bronze medal match where he won 3-6, 6-2, 6-4.
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