Independence Day 2023: From 1983 Cricket World Cup win to Neeraj Chopra's Olympic gold, India's iconic moments in sports

India is gearing up to celebrate its 77th Independence Day on 15 August, marking 76 years of freedom from the British rule. India’s journey in sports since gaining independence has been nothing short of remarkable. The country’s sporting landscape has also undergone significant growth over the past 76 years. Here, we take a look at the most notable achievements in the field of sports by India:

1st Asian Games (1951)

India’s first big event after independence was the inaugural Asian Games in 1951 that took place in New Delhi from 4 to 11 March. A total of 489 athletes from 11 Asian National Olympic Committees (NOCs) took part in the event and the National Stadium as the host venue.

Japan was the top country while India secured an honourable second position, boasting an impressive collection of 15 gold medals and an overall count of 51 medals.

Summer Olympics (1952)

In Helsinki, Finland, India took part in 1952 Summer Olympics. The Indian contingent consisted of 64 athletes, comprising 60 men and 4 women, who competed across 42 events spanning 11 different sports. India won a gold in Field hockey and a bronze medal earned by Khashaba Jadhav in the Men’s Freestyle Bantamweight Wrestling category.

World Cup Hockey, Malaysia (1975)

The 1975 Hockey World Cup took place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. India defeated Pakistan by 2–1 in the final. Surjit Singh scored the first goal while Ashok Kumar scored second goal.

World Cup Cricket, England (1983)

India scripted history when they won the 1983 Cricket World Cup under the captaincy of Kapil Dev. India beat West Indies in the final and this win sparked a cricket revolution in the country.

Athens Olympics (2004)

Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, a colonel in the Indian Army, clinched the silver medal in the sports shooting category. This was India’s only medal at the Athens Olympics in 2004.

Beijing Olympics (2008)

In Beijing Olympics, Abhinav Bindra made history as he became the first Indian individual Olympic gold medallist. He won the gold in men’s 10m air rifle shooting competition.

Cricket World Cup (2011)

Another huge moment for India was in 2011 when their cricket team, led by MS Dhoni beat Sri Lanka in the ODI World Cup final at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. India became the first country to win the Cricket World Cup final on home soil.

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️ #OnThisDay in 2011, #TeamIndia won the ODI World Cup for the second time. pic.twitter.com/IJNaLjkYLt

— BCCI (@BCCI) April 2, 2023

Tokyo Olympics (2020)

2020 Tokyo Olympics was a stellar one for India. Neeraj Chopra won the first-ever Olympic medal for India in athletics when he clinched gold in men’s javelin throw final.

#OTD in 2021, a small-town boy from Khandra hurled a javelin in Tokyo. The rest, they say, is history.

Happy #JavelinDay! #CraftingVictories #NeerajChopra pic.twitter.com/dWuPmgZi4N

— Inspire Institute of Sport (@IIS_Vijayanagar) August 7, 2023