Olympics: WHY India Always lagging behind ?

Why is India lagging behind in the Olympics?

KAKALI DAS

With the recent conclusion of the Paris Olympics, it’s an opportune moment for everyone invested in sports to reflect on past games. Much has already been said about India’s medal tally, which, unfortunately, did not match the success of the previous Tokyo edition.

India, in fact, finished with 6 medals, narrowly missing a 7th when the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) denied Vinesh Phogat‘s appeal for a joint silver. It was a bitter end to a long and challenging journey.

The standout aspect of this campaign was India’s failure to win any gold medals – the pinnacle of Olympic achievement. Isn’t it concerning that in a country of 1.4 billion people, there wasn’t a single Olympic gold medallist in this edition?

Failing to secure a single gold medal isn’t the kind of reputation India wants to project, especially when Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed his desire for the country to “host” the Olympics in 2036.

The 2036 Olympics are still 12 years away, leaving ample time for necessary groundwork. Winning the bid to host the Olympics is a massive challenge in itself. How does the process work? Two committees are responsible for overseeing the entire host selection process. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has two dedicated bodies – the Future Host Commission for Summer Games and another for Winter Games – that play a vital role in determining the host country for upcoming editions.

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Votes are cast by secret ballot, and the host is chosen by a majority of the votes from active members. The IOC currently consists of 99 members, including active athletes, former athletes, and presidents or senior leaders of international sporting federations or organizations recognized by the IOC.

Before India even considers hosting the Olympics, concerns about the country’s competence on the world stage as contenders must be addressed. While every medal is a significant achievement, the fact that a nation with such a massive population failed to win even a single gold raises many questions—especially when countries with much smaller populations are achieving far more.

In the last 16 years, or across five Olympic editions, India has won only two individual gold medals. Out of India’s total 41 medals, only 10 are gold, with the majority in hockey. Of these 10, just two are individual golds—Abhinav Bindra in 2008 and Neeraj Chopra in Tokyo. The rest were won in field hockey during a time when India was a dominant force in the sport, a period that dates back well before the present.

It’s not that India, as a sporting nation, isn’t progressing. The country has made significant strides recently—these same athletes who missed out on Olympic gold clinched 28 gold medals at the Asian Games. However, despite being Asian champions, they struggled to deliver under the immense pressure of performing on the world stage at the Olympics.

If these athletes can excel at the Asian Games, why can’t they replicate that success at the Olympics?

While there may be various reasons, the larger issue is India’s inability to convert silvers and bronzes into gold. Is the pressure affecting Indian athletes’ performances?

While there is much discussion about quality and infrastructure, the bigger issues—such as the mental aspect and the champion mindset—often go unaddressed.

When Neeraj Chopra won silver at the Paris Olympics, he apologized for not winning gold. Also, when Abhinav Bindra clinched gold in Beijing, the competition was intense until his final shot, and he dedicated all those years of hard work to achieving that gold.

To achieve that, athletes need to manage pressure, exhibit a champion’s mindset, and condition their minds to believe that India can compete with any nation. That killer instinct—seemingly lacking—needs to be developed.

Where does this issue originate? A contributing factor is the lack of a robust sporting structure. While the population is 1.4 billion, how many people are directly or indirectly involved in or invested in sports?

Only 5.56% of India’s population is directly or indirectly involved in sports. In comparison, countries like China and the USA have much higher figures: 20% in the USA and a staggering 24% in China. This disparity is reflected in their medal tallies.

These numbers, based on a private survey, highlight a stark difference. In India, the importance of sports isn’t emphasized from a young age, unlike in the USA and China, where athletes are trained from childhood. For these countries, sports are a way of life and a deeply ingrained part of their culture.

This highlights another crucial issue—the disparity between male and female sporting opportunities. In India, this remains a significant concern. At the Paris Olympics, for the first time in history, an equal number of male and female athletes participated. However, from India’s 117 contestants, 70 were male and only 47 were female.

The USA sent 314 female athletes and 278 male athletes to Paris. Female athletes are just as crucial to a country’s sporting tradition and dominance as their male counterparts.

In countries like the USA, China, and Australia, the contribution of women to their medal tallies has been immense. India had only one woman out of six medalists, which is 25%, because Manu Bhaker contributed to two of those medals.

In the USA, nearly 60% of the medals were won by female athletes, including those in mixed events. China and Australia exceed this, with one country reaching 62%. This highlights a significant gap that India is far from bridging. Additionally, how many of the Indian athletes bound for Paris had competed in major sporting disciplines? Before Neeraj Chopra, India lacked a prominent figure in athletics, and the country continues to struggle in track and field events on the global stage.

The failure to compete effectively diminishes India’s chances, and even those who do compete often seem content with silver or bronze. India may need to reconsider its perspective: if not winning gold isn’t seen as failure, then what is?

For India to realize its dream of hosting the Olympics, it must first focus on conquering them. Developing and honing a champion mindset is essential for achieving this goal.

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