As the world prepares for the Commonwealth Games 2022, Indian athletes are once again ready to take field and bring laurels for their nation. The first edition of the sporting extravaganza was held in Canada in the year 1930.
The event was founded by Melville Marks Robinson and was called the ‘British Empire Games’ from 1930-1950, British Empire and Commonwealth Games from 1954 to 1966, and British Commonwealth Games from 1970-74.
Commonwealth Games have taken place every four years since 1930 with the exception of the years 1942 and 1946 which were canceled due to World War II. The Games are overseen by Commonwealth Games Federation which controls the sporting program and selects the host cities.
Here are some historical facts related to India at the Commonwealth Games:
- First Medal – India won a medal in their very first outing at the commonwealth games in 1934. Rashid Anwar was the first medalist from the country who won a bronze medal in Wrestling.
- First Gold – The long wait for a gold medal for India at the event was finally ended by the Flying Sikh of India, Milkha Singh who won a Gold at the 1958 edition in Cardiff.
- First medal by a woman – The women athletes finally tasted success for the first time in Commonwealth Games 1978, when Amia Ghia and Kanwal Thakur won bronze medals in Edmonton, Canada.
- Most Successful athlete – India’s most successful athlete at the Commonwealth Games is shooter, Jaspal Rana who has 15 medals to his name.
- Best Performance – The best performance by India came as the host nation at the Commonwealth Games 2010. India won a total of 101 medals as they finished second in the medal tally for the first time. India won 38 gold, 27 silver and 36 bronze at the mega event to register their most successful outing at the event ever.
India was ranked third in the list of medals tally in the 2018 edition of the mega event at Gold Coast, Australia. The entire nation is hoping for another remarkable performance by the athletes in the coming edition of the Games in Birmingham.
