India will make its 26th appearance at the Summer Olympics this year, and for that, they will go back to Paris – the place where the country’s Olympic journey began. At least that is the case in the records of the International Olympic Council (IOC). A total of 111 athletes will represent the country in France this year, down from 124 at the Tokyo Olympics largely due to the women’s hockey team not qualifying. Interestingly though, it will only be the 20th time that the athletes will be playing for the Indian flag as it exists today; the tricolour with the Ashoka Chakra in the middle. For in the first five games that a country named India took part, it was under British rule and the flag that was used at the time was either the Civil Ensign of the time or the Viceroy’s flag.
Paris 1900 – A debatable start
The 1900 Olympics was the second-ever edition of the Games and, according to IOC records, India’s first appearance at the multi-sport event. Norman Pritchard is the only athlete to have represented India that year and he won silver in men’s 200m and men’s 200m hurdles. Pritchard remained the only athlete to have won a medal in athletics representing India until Neeraj Chopra won gold in javelin at Tokyo 2020. He still remains the only athlete to win two medals in the same Olympics while representing India. It is to be noted that Pritchard is listed as having competed for Great Britain in 1900 in the official track and field records of the Games published by World Athletics in 2005.
Antwerp 1920 – India enters the Olympic Movement
While India’s participation in the 1900 Olympics is based almost entirely on the IOC records, the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, Belgium, marks the nation’s entry into the multi-sport event for all practical means and purposes. It started off with Deccan Gymkhana President Sir Dorabji Tata requesting the Governor of Bombay Lloyd George to secure India’s representation at the Olympics through the British Olympic Committee. The IOC granted India affiliation in February 1920 after which a committee led by Tata selected a team. PC Bannerjee was chosen for sprints; PD Chaugule for the 10,000m and marathon; Sadashiv Datar for the 10,000m and marathon; HD Kaikadi for the 5,000m and 10,000m; Dinkarrao Shinde for bantamweight wrestling; and K Nawale for lightweight wrestling. Sohrab H Bhoot was manager and Dr AHA Fyzee was medical officer and adviser for the team.
Paris 1924 – India’s first female athlete
India made its third official appearance at the Games a century ago in Paris. The first edition of the National Games was held in Lahore some months before the Olympics and sportspersons were selected for the journey to Antwerp based on their performances in the event. The Indian contingent consisted of 14 competitors split evenly across athletics and tennis. The latter included Nora Polley in women’s singles and mixed doubles, thus making her the first woman to represent India at the Olympics.
Amsterdam 1928 – Start of the hockey domination
The 1928 Olympics marks a watershed moment for India as this marked the first time that the men’s hockey team won gold. It was the team’s maiden appearance at the Olympics and it started a streak that would last until the 1956 Olympics. India topped a group that consisted of Belgium, Denmark, Switzerland and Austria. The Netherlands faced them in the final, having topped the other group that consisted of Germany, France and Spain and India won the match 3-0. Apart from the hockey team, six athletes represented India in athletics and one man, DD Mulji, became the first to represent the country in swimming.
Los Angeles 1932 – Second hockey gold
India won their second hockey gold medal at LA 1928. Japan and the United States were the only other teams who took part, with most countries being unable to afford to send a team to the USA due to the Great Depression. The Indian team themselves had to play exhibition matches at every stop on their long journey by sea to Los Angeles. The competition was nothing more than a round-robin group stage with each team playing each other once. India were the best team by some distance, beating Japan 11-1 in their first match and the United States 24-1 in their second. Three athletes represented India in athletics as well while one, Nalin Malik took part in 400m freestyle swimming.
Berlin 1936 – Third hockey gold and Dhyan Chand’s last Olympics
Eric Whiteside ran the men’s 100m and 200m while CSA Swami represented India in men’s marathon but it was the hockey team who won a medal once again, winning their third consecutive Olympic gold medal. A total off 11 nations were divided into three groups, with India clubbed with Japan, Hungary and the United States. India scored a whopping 20 goals in their three group stage matches and conceded none. They then beat France 10-0 in the semi-finals and then faced hosts Germany in the gold medal match. It is reported that the Indian team were uncharacteristically nervous before the game as they had lost to Germany 4-1 in the previous match played between the two sides before the Olympics. In fact, the Germans had restricted India to a single goal in the first half. India came out all guns blazing in the second half though, and went on to win the final 8-1.
This was the last time India played under the British flag at the Olympics and the last time Dhyan Chand played at the Games. The scheduled 1940 and 1944 Olympics were cancelled due to World War 2 and by the time the 1948 Games came around, India was an independent nation and Dhyan Chand, though still playing exhibition matches, was well into his 40s and not part of the squad.