A journey through India's participation and achievements in the Olympic Games
India first participated in the Olympic Games in 1900, with a lone athlete (Norman Pritchard) winning two silver medals. Since then, India has sent athletes to compete in most Summer Olympic Games, as well as several Winter Olympic Games.
India is especially known for its dominance in field hockey, having won 8 gold medals between 1928 and 1980. In recent years, Indian athletes have achieved success in various sports including shooting, wrestling, badminton, and athletics.
Gold Medals
Silver Medals
Bronze Medals
Total: 35 Medals
| Year | Host City | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total | Notable Achievements |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 | Paris | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | Norman Pritchard (2 silver in athletics) |
| 1928 | Amsterdam | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | First gold in field hockey |
| 1932 | Los Angeles | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | Field hockey gold |
| 1936 | Berlin | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | Field hockey gold |
| 1948 | London | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | Field hockey gold (first Olympics after independence) |
| 1952 | Helsinki | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | Field hockey gold, KD Jadhav bronze (wrestling) |
| 1956 | Melbourne | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | Field hockey gold |
| 1960 | Rome | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | Field hockey silver |
| 1964 | Tokyo | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | Field hockey gold |
| 1968 | Mexico City | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | Field hockey bronze |
| 1972 | Munich | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | Field hockey bronze |
| 1980 | Moscow | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | Field hockey gold |
| 1996 | Atlanta | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | Leander Paes bronze (tennis) |
| 2000 | Sydney | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | Karnam Malleswari bronze (weightlifting) |
| 2004 | Athens | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore silver (shooting) |
| 2008 | Beijing | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | Abhinav Bindra gold (shooting), Vijender Kumar & Sushil Kumar bronze |
| 2012 | London | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | Sushil Kumar silver, Vijay Kumar silver, Yogeshwar Dutt, Mary Kom, Gagan Narang, Saina Nehwal bronze |
| 2016 | Rio de Janeiro | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | PV Sindhu silver, Sakshi Malik bronze |
| 2020 | Tokyo | 1 | 2 | 4 | 7 | Neeraj Chopra gold (javelin), Mirabai Chanu silver, Ravi Kumar Dahiya silver, PV Sindhu, Lovlina Borgohain, Bajrang Punia, Indian men's hockey team bronze |
Gold Medalist in Javelin Throw (Tokyo 2020)
First Indian to win gold in athletics
Gold Medalist in 10m Air Rifle (Beijing 2008)
First Indian individual gold medalist
Silver (2016) & Bronze (2020) in Badminton
First Indian woman to win two Olympic medals
Hockey Legend (1928, 1932, 1936 Gold Medals)
Scored over 400 goals in his career
India has participated in Winter Olympics since 1964 but has yet to win a medal.
India's first Olympic participation with Norman Pritchard winning two silver medals in athletics.
India wins its first gold medal in field hockey, beginning a dominant era in the sport.
KD Jadhav becomes the first individual medalist from independent India, winning bronze in wrestling.
Leander Paes wins bronze in tennis, ending India's 16-year medal drought.
Karnam Malleswari becomes the first Indian woman to win an Olympic medal (bronze in weightlifting).
Abhinav Bindra becomes India's first individual gold medalist in an individual event.
India wins its highest medal tally in a single Olympics (6 medals).
Neeraj Chopra wins India's first gold in athletics and first track & field medal.