India@75: Abhinav Bindra to Neeraj Chopra: Indian men who hold special Olympic records
FollowIndia is on the verge of completing its 75th year of independence. Thus, we present the Indian men who hold a particular record at the Olympics.
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When it comes to India as a sporting nation, barring cricket, it is still on the rise in most other sporting categories, as it is yet to become a sporting powerhouse. At the same time, it continued to improve its performance and medal tally at the Olympic Games. Nonetheless, over the years, India has been scaling new heights in the Olympics, as it keeps winning medals, while some even arrive in unique categories. With India preparing to celebrate its 75th year of independence, we present the Indian men who hold particular records at the Summer Olympic Games.
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Norman Pritchard
As his name suggests, he is a British-Indian athlete who represented India during the British rule in the 1900 Paris Olympics. He was the first-ever Indian Olympian to win a medal at the Games, winning the silver in the men's 200 metres race. At the same time, he was also the first Indian man to win multiple Olympic medals, as he followed it up with another silver in the men's 200-metre hurdles at the same edition.
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Major Dhyan Chand
The Indian hockey legend made India a powerhouse in the sport during his time, while he won three Olympic golds with the side in 1928, 1932 and 1936, making him the most medal-winning Indian Olympian to date.
KD Jadhav
After athletics and hockey, it was India's turn to win the medal in wrestling. Jadhav became the first Indian to win a medal in the sport, a bronze in the men's freestyle Bantamweight, during the 1952 Helsinki Olympics.
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Leander Paes
After wrestling comes tennis, and it took 44 years since Helsinki for India to win a medal in a different sport. Paes won the men's singles bronze during the 1996 Atlanta Games.
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Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore
During the 2004 Athens Games, India racked up its maiden medal in the shooting category, as Rathore won the silver in the men's double trap.
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Abhinav Bindra
If Rathore handed India a silver in Athens, Binra followed it up with the gold in the following edition in Beijing 2008, as he hit the bull's eye in the men's 10m air rifle, thus becoming the first Indian to win a gold in an individual Olympic event.
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Vijender Singh
In 2008, it was the turn of boxing to hand India its first-ever medal in the sport, with Vijender taking up the middleweight bronze.
