When Milkha Singh attended the 1960 Rome Olympics, he missed bagging a medal by a whisker. Regret stayed with him for the rest of his life. The sprinter ace hoped that one day an Indian would take home an Olympic medal. While we may not have solved the track and field games yet, India has managed to take home 26 medals so far: 9 gold, 6 silver and 11 bronze. The country now has its hopes pinned on the new set of athletes competing next Tokyo Olympics.
This International Olympic Day (June 23, 2021)Global Indian revisits the travels of some Indian Olympic medalists.
PV Sindhu, Badminton
PV Sindhu
PV Sindhu has many firsts and records to his credit. Most important of her of course would be her silver medal at the 2016 Olympics. When she qualified for the finals of the event, she became the first Indian badminton player to do so. Then there is the fact that she is there first Indian to become the badminton world champion. Sindhu has won several medals and is currently ranked number 7 in the world in the women’s singles category. This year, she is the only Indian women’s singles player to have qualified for the Tokyo Olympics, where she hopes to win gold. To prepare, she is practicing religiously for five to six hours with her pullman Park Tae Sang.
Sindhu’s love of badminton began when he was 8 years old. Although both her parents, PV Ramana and P Vijaya, are volleyball players, for Sindhu it was badminton that kept the charm. He began training with Mehboob Ali at the badminton courts of the Indian Railway Institute of Signal Engineering and Telecommunications in Secunderabad, before joining the Gopichand Badminton Academy run by Pullela Gopichand, her childhood idol. Although she lives 56 kilometers away from the Academy, Sindhu has always been keen to report in time for rehearsal. Her victories in the international arena catapulted her into the top 10 in the world and she was also awarded the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and Padma Shri. In January 2020, Sindhu was awarded the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award in India.
Abhinav Bindra, tiratore
Abhinav Bindra
Abhinav Bindra made history when he bagged a gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics in the 10m Air Rifle event. This was India’s first Olympic gold medal since 1980, when the men’s hockey team won their laurels. He also won nine medals at the Commonwealth Games and three gold medals at the Asian Games. A child prodigy, Bindra began training at the age of 15 with his first coach, Lieutenant Colonel JS Dhillon. He was the youngest participant in the 2000 Sydney Olympics, where he finished 11th. He won the Arjuna Prize at the age of 18 and the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna at 19; he also received the Padma Bhushan after his success at the Olympics.
However, his success story is not that of an athlete fighting poverty and all odds before reaching glory. Perhaps this is also the reason; detractors questioned his sincerity and determination at first. He belongs to a wealthy Punjabi family and is the CEO of Abhinav Futuristics, the sole distributor of the Walther brand of shotguns and pistols in India. But few know that Bindra founded the Abhinav Bindra Foundation and the Abhinav Bindra Sporting Trust through which he collaborates with schools to promote shooting at grassroots level through technical and financial assistance. He retired from sport in 2016 and is a member of the IOC Athletes Commission.
Vijender Singh, Boxing
Vijender Singh
Vijender Singh made history when he won a bronze in the middleweight category at 2008 Beijing Olympics; it was the first Olympic medal in boxing by an Indian. He went on to win bronze medals at the 2009 world championships e 2010 Commonwealth Games in addition to silver medals al Commonwealth Games 2006 and 2014.
Interestingly, Vijender embarked on boxing as a means of securing a stable job in the government. Raised in a middle-class family in Haryana, Vijender always dreamed of a stable job for a secure future. Until, his victory in the Olympics changed the fortunes and catapulted him into the big league. Although he has climbed the charts on the national circuit, his performance failed to bring him the job he had dreamed of. It was then that he was asked to aim for the Olympics, as that could have increased his chances of getting a government job. When he got ready for the 2004 Athens Olympics, he was for the same reason. However, he soon retired following a defeat in the opening round.
That began to change when Indian boxing coach GS Sandhu insisted that athletes watch every fight in their category. This gave Vijender a taste of the best in action; most importantly, the medal ceremony spurred him on. Back home, he returned to the game with a renewed purpose and gave his all. The rest, as they say, is history.
Mary Kom, Boxing
MC Mary Kom
MC Mary Kom became the first and only Indian woman to qualify for the 2012 Olympic Games where he won a bronze medal in the flyweight category. She has been ranked as number 1 in the world in women’s light flyweight since International Boxing Association and is the first Indian boxer to win gold medals at the 2014 Asian Games as well as al Commonwealth Games 2018.
Born into a poor family in Manipur, Mary initially participated in sports such as volleyball, soccer and athletics while in school. However, she was inspired by Dingko Singh’s success and she decided to switch from track and field to boxing in 2000. She initially hid her interest in boxing from her father, who feared she might ruin her chances of marriage. She eventually found out when Mary’s photo appeared in a newspaper after winning the state boxing championship. She had to overcome her family’s firm objection to move to Imphal to pursue a career in boxing where she convinced a local coach, K Kosana Meitei, to coach her. She took a short break after her wedding, during which she had two children, before returning to sports and winning the silver medal at the 2008 Asian Women’s Boxing Championship in India. He hasn’t looked back since.
Watch Mary Kom talk about her 2012 Olympics victory
Published June 23, 2021
