India Ready To Shine In Asian Games Again, Here Are Nine Unforgettable Moments At Asiad So Far
India¡¯s history in Asian Games has been quite glorious. India has hosted the Asian Games twice, the first in 1951 and then in 1982.
In 1951, the then President Rajendra Prasad had inaugurated the games at the Dhyan Chand National Stadium. In 1982, no one can ever forget the larger than life presence of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in the stadium.
PT Usha, reuters
As the 18th edition of the Asian Games has already started in Indonesia¡¯s Jakarta, Indian sportspersons will once again compete with other Asian countries to win medals. India¡¯s record has been decent in Asian games and the country is regarded as one of the most powerful nations in various disciplines like hockey and wrestling. While talking about Asian Games, one cannot ignore names like Milkha Singh and golden girl, PT Usha.
Here are 10 great moments, India had in last 17 years of Asian Games where our athletes made the tri-colour go up.
First gold in Asiad
A Tribute to India¡¯s first ever Asian Games gold medalist in 100 m freestyle - Sachin Nag from Bengal. #SwimIndia https://t.co/skvasQ32e8 pic.twitter.com/p2O3yQK4nz
¡ª SwimIndia (@SwimmingIndia) October 29, 2016
In 1951, India won its first gold for swimming. West Bengal¡¯s Sachin Nag created history by winning a gold medal in 100 m freestyle. Then PM Jawaharlal Nehru had praised the athlete in his inaugural speech and Nag lived up to Nehru¡¯s words. Apart from the gold, Nag added two bronze medals to his tally in 4x100, freestyle and 3x100m medley in the same tournament.
Football gold twice
The 1962 Asian Games: when India conquered the continent. A legendary success but sadly a false dawn https://t.co/Bw3Jhzz6RU #indianfootball pic.twitter.com/VvyHlue6a3
¡ª These Football Times (@thesefootytimes) December 20, 2016
This would surprise many, but India won medals in Football. Salien Manna's team won gold in 1951 by defeating Iran (Iran played this FIFA WC) 1-0 in presence of Nehru. It was a year back in 1950 when India had refused to participate in Fifa World Cup held in Brazil and Asiad gold came as a great relief. India won the second gold in 1962 after beating Korea in Jakarta.
India¡¯s Mikha Vs Pak¡¯s Abdul Khaliq
1958 :: Milkha Singh Defeating Abdul Khaliq of Pakistan In 200 Meter Race to Win Gold Medal In Tokyo Asian Games .
¡ª indianhistorypics (@IndiaHistorypic) May 29, 2018
In 1958 Abdul Khaliq Was The Fastest Man In Asia
( Photo - The Hindu Newspaper / @the_hindu ) pic.twitter.com/x43z2Hc2Jw
Until 1958, Pakistan¡¯s Abdul Khaliq as shown in Milkha Singh¡¯s biopic ¡®Bhag Milkha Bhag¡¯ was the fastest Asian on the planet. But Milkha was destined to change this as he defeated Khaliq in 200 meter race to win gold at Tokyo Asian Games. Milkha also won gold in 400m sprints in the same Asiad.
Then came 1982, India welcomed Asiad again
New Delhi once again hosted Asiad in 1982. It not only changed to face of the capital with new roads, flyover, new buses and phone lines, the biggest contribution was the advent of Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium with a capacity of 60,000 spectators. It was the first Asiad backed by Olympic Council of Asia and the first Asian Games to be represented by a mascot with Appu - an elephant.
PT Usha set tracks on Seoul on fire
reuters
PT Usha came, saw and conquered Seoul- the Kerala athlete won four gold medal and managed to improve her previous outing at New Delhi where she had won two silvers. She went on to become one of India¡¯s greatest female athletes ever and shattered the records in 200m, 400m, 400m and 4x400 metre relay to win five individual medals which included four golds.
Hockey has always been there
In 1998, the last Asian Games of the 20th century were held in Bangkok and they provided a golden moment for Indian hockey. It was a tale of two tournaments in 1998. In May 1998, India floundered at the 9th World Cup in Utrecht, Netherlands finishing a dismal ninth. Only New Zealand, Malaysia and Poland finished below India. Yet in December 1998, India finished as all conquering heroes, winning the Bangkok Asian games hockey gold medal for the second time only after beating South Korea 5-3 on penalties in a memorable final.
According to sportskeeda, this transition took place because of the scintillating form of India¡¯s skipper Dhanraj Pillay. Bangkok 1998 was Dhanraj Pillay¡¯s finest hour. It was definitely the most memorable and successful tournament in his illustrious career, as he scored 11 goals from 6 matches in the 1998 Asian Games hockey competition, with eight goals in the first three matches of the group league phase.
Dingko Singh brought glory
Indian Express
Dingko Singh¡¯s gold in 1998 Asian Games at Bangkok gave a new start to boxing in India. Singh won gold in bantamweight division (54 kg) which is still one of the best categories Indian boxers hope to win medals in. Some might call it a fluke, since Singh won because his opponent couldn¡¯t continue due to the fracture suffered during the semifinal bout. But many don¡¯t know that Singh¡¯s semifinal bout was against the tough Thai champion whom he defeated with sheer brilliance.
Billiard boys
It was 1998 Asiad again, Geeth Sethi and Ashok Shandilua made history by winning gold in the English billiard doubles. The duo came from behind as they were trailing a 1-2 deficit and won 4-3 against the local champions. Geet Sethi wrote in a column on Sportstar Live, ¡°I was a five-time world billiards champion at the time, but none of those titles meant as much as that winning moment in Bangkok. I have cried only once after a title victory and it was at that victory ceremony in Bangkok when the tiranga was raised and our national anthem was played. Those tears are proof that that was my golden moment.¡±
Last, but obviously not the least: Mary Kom fights to win gold
PTI
Mary Kom doesn¡¯t require any introduction, she is by far one of the best athletes India has ever seen. The legendary pugilist from Manipur clinched gold in last Asiad in 2014 held in South Korea. She had an Olympic medal in 2012 London Olympics. She defeated her opponent 2-0 in the 51 kg category.