There have been instances when Indian athletes have made a memorable mark in the Olympics. Their performances have made the entire nation proud at the Global stage. They win or not, it doesn’t matter but it surely becomes a matter of pride for the whole nation. Some athletes have tasted massive success with their medal-winning performances while some athletes were able to win the hearts of the people with their fighting playing spirit.
Here is our list of top 10 performances from Indian athletes in the Summer Olympics:
1) Yogeshwar Dutt – Bronze Medal Match (London Olympics 2012)
One of the top male wrestlers of India, Yogeshwar Dutt has earned the title of a veteran with his success in many international sports events and Championships. Yogeshwar Dutt’s major medal-winning performance comes from the 2012 London Summer Olympics. He won the Bronze medal by defeating North Korea’s Jong Myong Ri on his way to recording an emphatic 3-1 victory in the 60kg freestyle play-off. After losing the first round, Yogeshwar Dutt staged a strong comeback in the final round. His contributions in the sports of wrestling have been recognized by the Government of India and he has been honored with the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award in 2012 and Padam Shri Award in 2013.
2) Sakshi Malik- Bronze Medal Match (Rio Olympics 2016)
Sakshi Malik won the bronze medal in the 58 Kg freestyle category in Women’s Wrestling. The 27-year-old staged one of the best comebacks by a female athlete in the Olympic Games. After losing to the eventual finalist Valeria Koblova of Russia in the quarterfinal, Sakshi qualified for the repechage round where she easily defeated Mongolia’s Pürevdorjiin Orkhon. It was in the match against Aisuluu Tynybekova of Kyrgyzstan, where Sakshi proved her mighty worth.
She was trailing by 0-5 at one stage, until staging a strong comeback by leveling the score 5-5. With just nine seconds to go, the score was tied at 5-5, Sakshi did something that no one had expected so. She took a strong grip on her opponent’s midsection and took her down in the game taking the lead to 8:5. Moments later, Sakshi Malik became the first Indian woman wrestler to win a medal at Olympics. This is one of the greatest comebacks from an Indian athlete at the Olympics.
3) Mary Kom- Bronze Medal Match (London Olympics 2012)
It was in the year 2012 when the country’s first woman pugilist MC Mary Kom participated in the Olympics event in the 2012 London Olympics. Previously Mary Kom specialized in 46 Kg and 48 Kg Flyweight categories before taking part in the Olympic Games. That was the first time women’s boxing had featured as an Olympic sport and Mary Kom featured in 51Kg Flyweight category. She was the only Indian woman to qualify for the boxing event. Mary Kom easily excelled into the semi-finals of the event.
The semi-finals saw a fierce battle between Mary Kom and Nicola Adams of the UK. The rendezvous between the two ended in Nicola Adam’s favor as she advanced into the finals beating Mary Kom. Mary Kom tried giving her best in the match despite having a fever. Kom entered a major international bout uncertain of victory. While the nerves flowed from both sets of gloves. Mary Kom still won a Bronze medal for India. This was indeed one of the amazing performances delivered by an Indian athlete in the Olympics.
4) PV Sindhu- Silver Medal Match (Rio Olympics 2016)
PV Sindhu qualified for the 2016 Rio Olympics following the brilliant run of her form. In January 2013, PV Sindhu had won the Malaysia Masters Grand Prix women’s singles title by beating Scotland’s Kirsty Gilmour in the final. That marked her qualification in the Rio Olympics. PV Sindhu easily surpassed the group stages in the Olympics by beating her opponents with ease. She then entered the semi-finals and was supposed to match with Japan’s Nozomi Okuhara. It was one of the best performances delivered by PV Sindhu in the entire Rio Olympics. PV Sindhu beat Nozomi Okuhara in straight sets(2:0) ensuring herself a podium finish. However, PV Sindhu lost in the finals to Spain’s Carolina Marin and finally settled for a Silver medal. Her semifinals match is still considered as one of her most dominating performance.
5) Vijender Singh- Bronze Medal Match (Beijing Olympics 2008)
Boxer Vijender Kumar tasted success in the Beijing Olympics. He was the first-ever Indian boxer to win a medal at the Olympic Games. Vijender Singh trained very hard in Germany as he prepared for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Vijender looked dangerous as he beat his opponents with succession. After beating Angkhan Chomphuphuang of Thailand 13–3 in round 16, Vijender reached the Middleweight Boxing Quarterfinals. The quarter-finals match against Carlos Góngora of Ecuador was a very tight game and also one of the best performances by Vijender Singh. Vijender who outclassed his opponents in the events found it very difficult in scoring points against Carlos. Despite that, Vijender managed to take a predominant lead over his opponent and excelled in the Semifinals. He ended up with a Bronze medal after the Semifinals.
6) Sushil Kumar- Silver Medal Match (London Olympics 2012)
The 2008 Beijing Olympics, Bronze medalist Sushil Kumar bettered his performance at the London Olympics in 2012. Sushil Kumar participated in the 66Kg Freestyle category. Sushil Kumar was also the opening flag bearer for India in the 2012 London Olympics after his success in the 2008 Olympics. With the help of his experience, Sushil Kumar reached the semi-finals of the event. He played the semi-finals against Kazakhstan’s Akzhurek Tanatarov where he beat him with a paramount performance. But in the finals, he lost against Japanese wrestler Tatsuhiro Yonemitsu. Apparently, it was his best performance in the Summer Olympics. As of now, Sushil Kumar is looking forward to his last Olympics before taking retirement.
7) Milkha Singh- 1960 Rome Olympics
The Flying Sikh of India, Milkha Singh appeared in three consecutive editions of the Olympic Games i.e., in the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome and 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. His best performance in Olympics was in the 1960 Rome Olympics as he entered as one of the favorites in 400m final events. Milkha Singh is best remembered for that year’s performance as he was leading the race until the 200m metre mark. But due to some distraction or what so, he lost the momentum that led to his opponents surpassing him. Milkha Singh slowed down a bit after crossing the 250 meters mark and failed to sustain his pace then after. Milkha Singh came fourth in that race. He lost the Bronze medal by less than a second. Milkha Singh soon became a sporting icon in India. His image inspired the youth and his performance gave millions of Indians a hope that even they can represent their country one day.
8) Abhinav Bindra- Gold Medal Match (Beijing Olympics 2008)
The first-ever Individual Gold medalist of the country, Abhinav Bindra showed his best performance in the Summer Olympics in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Earlier he participated in the 2000 Olympic Games where he became the youngest Indian to appear in the Olympic Games. He also participated in the 2004 Athens Olympics but failed to win any medal there. However, he didn’t lose hope and qualified for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He participated in Men’s 10m Air Rifle event after shooting a total of 700.5. Abhinav Bindra’s Gold medal was the country’s first individual Gold medal at the Olympic. It was probably his best performance and one of the best performances by an Indian athlete in the Summer Olympics.
9) Karnam Malleswari- Bronze Medal Match (Sydney Olympics 2000)
The first Indian woman to ever win an Olympics medal, Karnam Malleswari has been an achiever before even participating in the Olympics. Malleswari was a two-time weightlifting world champion with 29 international medals, which includes 11 gold medals. At the 2000 Sydney Summer Olympics, Malleswari lifted 110 kg in the “snatch” and 130 kg in the “clean and jerk” categories for a total of 240 kg. She won the bronze medal and became the first Indian woman to win an Olympic medal. It was by far her best appearance in the Olympics for India and at the same time, she set an example for millions of Indian girls. She is the first Indian Woman weightlifter to win an Olympic medal.
10) Indian Hockey Team- Gold Medal Match (London Olympics 1948)
Before the 1948 Summer Olympics, Britain and India had never competed together at the Olympics. Indian Hockey team again reached the finals for the fourth time in the Olympics’ Hockey event. It was an the matter of embarrassment for the Great Britain team to even admit that their former colony(India) team was considered the better side team among both the teams. Indian Hockey team easily reached the semi-finals where they defeated the Dutch hockey team to reach the finals.
Great Britain also reached the finals as they beat Pakistan team in the semi-finals match. For the finals against formidable team India, Britons completely focused on its defense But was shortly unable to keep up with the fast-paced Indians, and they eventually lost to the Indian side 4-0. That match was indeed India’s one of the best and most dominating performances at the Olympics as Great Britain team were subjugated by their wrath in the finals. Especially the fact that it came just the year after Indian got its Independence in 1947. It was India’s fourth Gold medal in Summer Olympics making it one of the most successful teams to do so.