India_at_the_Commonwealth_Games

India at the Commonwealth Games

India at the Commonwealth Games

Sporting event delegation

India has competed in all except four editions of the Commonwealth Games; starting at the second Games in 1934. India has also hosted the games once, in 2010. The most successful event for India in these games is shooting.[1][2]

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Brief History

India have been fairly regular at the Commonwealth Games, featuring in all but four editions (1930, 1950, 1962 and 1986) of the quadrennial showpiece.[3] Indian athletes debuted at the Commonwealth Games, then called the British Empire Games, back in 1934.[4] The Indian contingent at London 1934 Games featured six athletes, who competed in 10 track and field events and one wrestling event. India won one medal at their debut Commonwealth Games. Wrestler Rashid Anwar was the first Indian to win a medal at the Commonwealth Games after clinching the bronze medal in the men's 74 kg freestyle wrestling event at 1934 British Empire Games.[5] Since their debut in 1934, India have won 564 medals – 203 golds, 190 silvers and 171 bronze - at the Commonwealth Games.

However, the first few editions were very challenging for the nation. Post-independence, India mainly participated in athletics but medals were few and far between until things took a turn for the better in 1958. Legendary sprinter Milkha Singh became the first Indian to win a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games, clinching the top spot in the men's 440 yard event at Cardiff 1958.[6][7] India bagged another gold in the same edition when heavyweight wrestler Lila Ram won in the men's 100kg freestyle category.[8] Cardiff 1958 was a historic year for women's participation too as track and field athletes Stephanie D’Souza and Elizabeth Davenport became the first Indian women to compete at the Commonwealth Games.[9][10]

The rise of Indian wrestling in the 1970s and the 1980s played a significant role in the country's improving fortunes at the Commonwealth Games.[11][12] While the men dominated the winners list in the initial years, Indian women have also upped their performances since the turn of 70s.[13] Indian badminton players Ami Ghia and Kanwal Thakar Singh were the first Indian women to win a Commonwealth Games medal, pocketing a women's doubles bronze during Edmonton 1978.[14][15] Along with the wrestlers, the Indian weightlifters stepped up and earned numerous accolades for the nation, with Raghavan Chanderasekaran proving to be the jewel in the crown. Two-time Olympian weightlifter Raghavan Chanderasekaran won three gold medals, including snatch, clean and jerk and overall, in the flyweight division at Commonwealth Games 1990 and followed it up with three silvers in bantamweight at the 1994 edition in Victoria, Canada.[16][17] Pistol shooter Jaspal Rana is the most successful Indian athlete at the Commonwealth Games, with 15 medals – nine golds, four silvers and two bronze. He dominated the shooting circuit in the 1990s and early 2000s.[18][19]

The Indian shooters played a crucial role during India's best showing at the Commonwealth Games, which came in 2010.[20] At New Delhi 2010, India won 101 medals - 39 gold medals, 26 silvers and 36 bronze to finish second on the medals leaderboard. New Delhi 2010 remains India's most successful Commonwealth Games until date. Since the 2000s, India have consistently finished among the top five countries in the medals table and are now a force to be reckoned with at the Commonwealth Games.[21] At Commonwealth Games 2018 in Gold Coast table tennis ace Manika Batra was the most successful Indian with four medals. India finished third with 66 medals at the edition.[22][23][24][25]

Host

Shera, the Mascot of the Commonwealth Games Delhi 2010

India hosted the Games in 2010, at Delhi. It was India's most successful Commonwealth Games to date with Indian athletes winning 38 gold, 27 silver and 36 bronze medals.[26][27]

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Overall Medal Tally By Games

The 2010 Commonwealth Games opening ceremony at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
Closing ceremony of the 2010 Commonwealth Games

At the 2022 Commonwealth Games, India ended its campaign with a total of 61 medals (22 gold, 16 silver, 23 bronze). India with an overall total of 564 medals (203 gold, 190 silver, 171 bronze) is ranked 4th at the All-time Commonwealth Games medal table. India's first ever Commonwealth medal was won by Rashid Anwar, who won a bronze in the category of wrestling in 1934.[28]

Year Gold Silver Bronze Total Position
1930 Canada Hamilton, CanadaDid not participate
1934 England London, England001112th
1938 Australia Sydney, Australia0000–
1950 New Zealand Auckland, New ZealandDid not participate
1954 Canada Vancouver, Canada0000–
1958 Wales Cardiff, Wales21038th
1962 Australia Perth, AustraliaDid not participate
1966 Jamaica Kingston, Jamaica343108th
1970 Scotland Edinburgh, Scotland534126th
1974 New Zealand Christchurch, New Zealand483156th
1978 Canada Edmonton, Canada555156th
1982 Australia Brisbane, Australia583166th
1986 Scotland Edinburgh, ScotlandDid not participate
1990 New Zealand Auckland, New Zealand13811325th
1994 Canada Victoria, Canada6117246th
1998 Malaysia Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia7108257th
2002 England Manchester, England302217694th
2006 Australia Melbourne, Australia221711504th
2010 India New Delhi, India3827361012nd
2014 Scotland Glasgow, Scotland153019645th
2018 Australia Gold Coast, Australia262020663rd
2022 England Birmingham, England221623614th
Total2031901715644th

Medals by sport

Medalists of the Badminton mixed team competition at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. From left: India (silver), Malaysia (gold), and England (bronze).
Medalists of the 10-metre air pistol pairs women at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. From left: Dina Aspandiyarova, Pamela McKenzie, Heena Sidhu, Annu Raj Singh, Dorothy Ludwig, and Lynda Hare.
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See also

Notes

  1. [n 1]
    India won 1 Silver and 1 bronze medal in Powerlifting started from 2002 to 2014 when medals in Powerlifting were awarded under Weightlifting sport category. From 2018, Medals in Powerlifting are being awarded separately under individual sport category name.

References

  1. [1]
    "CWG 2022: A Look Back at India's History at the Commonwealth Games". Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  2. [2]
    "Commonwealth Games: India's medal tally record at Commonwealth Games (CWG)". Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  3. [3]
    "India at Commonwealth Games: Quiet beginnings to rousing podium finishes". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  4. [4]
    "India London 1934". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  5. [5]
    "Who won the first-ever Commonwealth Games medal for India?". Retrieved 29 September 2022.
  6. [6]
    "Commonwealth Games: When Milkha Singh surprised the world to start a golden tradition for India". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  7. [7]
    "When Milkha Singh bagged India's first Commonwealth Games gold medal". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  8. [8]
    "Wrestling legend Lila Ram passes away". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  9. [9]
    "Stephanie D'Souza". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  10. [10]
    "Elizabeth Jane Davenport". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  11. [11]
    "Know How Many Indian Wrestlers Have Won Medals at Commonwealth Games So Far". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  12. [12]
    "How has India performed in wrestling down the years at Commonwealth Games?". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  13. [13]
    "Commonwealth Games 2022: The meteoric rise of India's women sportspersons". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  14. [14]
    Rita Nunes, Crystelle; Kulkarni, Abhijeet (14 May 2020). "Know your legend: Ami Ghia, a path-breaking and unsung hero of Indian badminton". scroll.in. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  15. [15]
    Srivastava, Palash (3 July 2022). "Ami Ghia and Kanwal Thakar Singh — First Indian women to win Commonwealth Games medal". thebridge.in. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  16. [16]
    "India at Olympics: History of Weightlifting in the Games". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  17. [17]
    "India at the Commonwealth Games: Who was the First Indian to take part in Commonwealth Games?". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  18. [18]
    "Meet India's most successful athlete at Commonwealth Games —Jaspal Rana". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  19. [19]
    "Commonwealth Games: India's most successful athletes at multi-sport events". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  20. [20]
    "Commonwealth Games 2010: Shooters lead India's best-ever medal haul". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  21. [21]
    "101 medals, 2nd on medals tally: Remembering 2010 Commonwealth Games". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  22. [22]
    "Commonwealth Games 2018: Manika Batra leads India to historic women table tennis gold". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  23. [23]
    "2018 Commonwealth Games: Manika Batra's change of tactics caught Singapore by surprise". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  24. [24]
    "When Manika Batra became the first Indian woman to win individual Commonwealth Games gold in table tennis". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  25. [25]
    "CWG 2018: Manika Batra wins historic Table Tennis gold". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  26. [26]
    "Commonwealth Games 2010: Shooters lead India's best-ever medal haul". Retrieved 14 August 2022.
  27. [27]
    "New Delhi to host 2010 Commonwealth Games". Retrieved 14 August 2022.
  28. [28]
    "Commonwealth Games: All-time medal table". Retrieved 29 July 2022.
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