look news india
The Paris-2024 Olympics is going to start from tomorrow. It will conclude on August 11. Athletes from 206 National Olympic Committees and the IOC Refugee Olympic Team (EOR) will participate in it. 10,500 athletes from 35 locations across the country will participate in these games. Let us know about how the Olympics started in the context of this historic event.
The Olympic Games have a history dating back more than two millennia, deeply intertwining sports and culture. Beginning in 776 BC, these ancient games were held every four years in honor of the god Zeus and included not only athletic competitions but also artistic events such as music, poetry, and theater.
In the late 19th century, efforts to revive international sporting events faced challenges due to disarray within the global sports community. This changed when Baron Pierre de Coubertin convened the First Olympic Congress in Paris. The first Olympic Games of the modern era were held in Athens (Greece), the birthplace of the ancient Olympics, in April 1896. This is known as the Games of the First Olympiad. 241 athletes from 14 countries participated in this historic event.
Women took part in the Paris 1900 Olympic Games for the first time. British tennis player Charlotte Cooper, five-time Wimbledon champion, became the first female Olympic champion. There were 22 women among the 997 athletes who competed in tennis, sailing, croquet, equestrian and golf.
Women's participation at the Olympics has grown steadily over the past few decades, from 13 percent in 1964 to nearly 48.9 percent at the 2020 Tokyo Games, thanks to initiatives by the IOC and international federations. Notable achievements include the inclusion of women's boxing at the 2012 London Games and achieving near gender parity at Tokyo 2020. Rio 2016 saw 45 percent of athletes being women, a trend that continued at Tokyo, making it the most gender-balanced Olympics ever, with nearly half of the athletes being women. From the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896 to the 2024 Games in Paris, the Olympic Games have seen a lot of changes. The 1896 Games featured 241 athletes from 14 countries, with Greece leading the medal haul. The Games have grown in scope and inclusiveness over the past few decades, with significant achievements such as the first participation of women in 1900 and the introduction of new sports and events.
india at olympics
India's Olympic journey has changed a lot since its beginning with just one participant at the Paris Olympics in 1900. A historic moment came at the Antwerp Games in 1920 when India sent its first official contingent, marking a century of remarkable achievements. India actually debuted in tennis at the Paris-1924 Olympics, with five players participating in the singles and doubles events. This was followed by the remarkable performance of the Indian men's hockey team at the Amsterdam 1928 Olympics, where India secured its first Olympic gold medal under the leadership of the iconic Dhyan Chand. It is noteworthy that the hockey team scored 29 goals and did not have a single goal conceded against them in the entire tournament, setting a high standard on the international stage.
The 1930s and 40s also saw the rise of the Indian men's hockey team, led by the legendary Dhyan Chand, who won an unprecedented three consecutive gold medals at Amsterdam 1928, Los Angeles 1932 and Berlin 1936, cementing India's reputation as the world's premier hockey force.
India's Olympic journey after independence began with the London-1948 Games, where the nation fielded its largest contingent ever—86 athletes across nine sports. The Indian hockey team continued its dominance, securing its fourth Olympic gold and introducing Balbir Singh Sr. as a new star.
At the Helsinki-1952 Olympics, wrestler KD Jadhav created history by winning India's first individual Olympic medal, a bronze. At Mexico City 1968, the hockey team won a bronze, marking a departure from its usual top-two finish. India repeated the feat at the Munich 1972 Olympics. At Atlanta-1996, tennis star Leander Paes won the long-awaited bronze medal in men's singles, while four years later in 2000 Karnam Malleswari created history by becoming India's first woman to win an Olympic medal with a bronze in weightlifting.
The Beijing 2008 Olympics was a memorable one for India, when shooter Abhinav Bindra won the country's first individual gold medal in the 10m air rifle event, setting a new benchmark in Indian Olympic history. Boxer Vijender Singh and wrestler Sushil Kumar also won bronze medals, marking India's first multiple-medal haul since 1952. Saina Nehwal won India's first medal in badminton Olympics at the 2012 London Olympics. Sushil Kumar won his second Olympic medal and Gagan Narang, Vijay Kumar, Mary Kom and Yogeshwar Dutt added to India's medal tally, which was the highest at that time at six medals. PV Sindhu and Sakshi Malik were India's only medal winners at Rio 2016, which was the first time all the medals were won by female athletes.
India's best performance in Tokyo Olympics
Tokyo 2020 proved to be a historic one for India, winning a total of seven medals. The men's hockey team ended a 41-year medal drought with a bronze medal, while the women finished their best ever fourth. Neeraj Chopra won India's first track-and-field gold in javelin throw, ending the campaign on a high. India's Olympic history over the past decades is filled with remarkable achievements. A record eight gold medals in hockey, including six consecutive wins, KD Jadhav's historic individual medal for independent India, Abhinav Bindra's unprecedented gold at Beijing 2008, and Neeraj Chopra's historic track-and-field gold at Tokyo 2020.
India's eyes on Paris Olympics-2024
Ahead of the Paris Olympics, India has announced its largest ever contingent of 117 athletes, comprising 70 men and 47 women, across 16 diverse sporting disciplines. These athletes will participate in 69 events and have a chance to win a total of 95 medals. Backed by substantial funding of over Rs 470 crore from the government, India's athletes are set to make an indelible mark on the global stage.