Top 5 Indian Hockey’s Greatest Olympic Wins

Indian team has undoubtedly been the greatest in the history of the Olympics. With a total of 8 gold, two silver, and three Bronze medals to their name, India is the most successful team in the Olympics. It could get better if India manage to win a medal at the Paris Olympics 2024. Even without that, India has a legacy for itself in the Sport.

India dominated Hockey at the Olympics for over four decades. From the late 1920s to the 1960s, India won the gold medal in all but two instances. The two instances where India couldn't win gold were the instances where they won the silver and Bronze medals. The first instance of them failing to win a medal was in 1984.

In such a dominant run, it is very difficult to pick the best wins of a team. But the Indian team has been blessed with some of the greatest performances in the history of the Sport at the biggest event. While many of them were played in the final, one of them was for the Bronze medal.

It is time to look at the five best performances of the Indian Hockey team at the Olympics -

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First medal in 41 years by beating Germany 5-4 to clinch Bronze in Tokyo Olympics

India dominated Hockey in the Olympics for a long time. But 1980 was the last instance of them winning an Olympic medal in the Sport. It took India a whopping 41 years to win another medal. Hence, it was a special win. After losing to Belgium 2-5 in the semifinal, India had a great opportunity to rewrite their history. They had to overcome an attacking side like Germany. India scored 5 goals in the match.

Two of them were scored by Simranjeet Singh and Harmanpreet Singh respectively. The other goal was scored by Rupinder Pal Singh. India had a lead of 5-3 going into the fourth quarter. Germany pushed hard and scored the fourth goal of the match. With six seconds left in the match, the Germans attempted a shot which was brilliantly saved by PR Sreejesh to help India win a historic Bronze medal.

Maiden gold medal win by beating Netherlands 3-0 in Olympics 1928 final in their own backyard

It was India's first-ever appearance in the Olympics. And they made it count by delivering a memorable performance in the season. In the final of the event, India had the challenge to beat the Netherlands who were playing in their own backyard in Amsterdam. India showed that they could take on the best teams in the world and dominate them despite great support from the home crowd.

India beat the Dutch 3-0 and ended a perfect campaign without conceding a goal. It was the beginning of India's domination at the Olympics in Field Hockey. Dhyan Chand emerged as the star player who would go on to become the legend of the Sport. He scored two goals in the final and displayed incredible skills of stick work. With the help of Marthins' goal, India won its maiden gold medal in the Olympics.

Winning first-ever gold medal as an independent nation by beating Great Britain 4-0 in their own backyard in 1948

From 1936 to 1948, no Olympic event was held due to the World War. By the time London hosted the Olympics in 1948, India was an independent country. With that, they also lost some good players thanks to the formation of Pakistan. It was a difficult challenge for India to defend their gold medal after 12 years considering that there were many worthy challengers like Netherlands, Great Britain, and Pakistan.

India closely survived a scare in the semifinal against the Dutch by winning it 2-1. In the final, India was up against the home team Great Britain. India ended up beating Great Britain in their own backyard in a dominant way. Balbir Singh Sr was the star of the final who smashed two goals. Jansen and T Singh stepped up and ensured India thrashed the home side 4-0. It was independent India's first gold medal.

Taking revenge against Pakistan by winning the 1964 final 1-0 in Tokyo

For the first time in their history, India lost a gold medal in Hockey in the Olympics 1960 in Rome. A spirited performance from Pakistan in the final meant India had to settle for a silver. To prove their dominance in the Sport, India was under a bit of pressure to win the gold medal. It was Pakistan again in the final. By then, both teams had become arch-rivals in the sport. Given the results till the final, Pakistan was considered the favourite.

It was a closely fought final and India had to work hard for a win. Pakistan's defense was top-notch and avoided a lot of chances created by the Indian team. The moment for India came in the 40th minute of the match. Mohinder scored a goal and gave India a lead of 1-0. The Indian defense was brilliant and allowed the Pakistan strikers to make no inroads into the match. India successfully regained their gold medal by beating the arch-rivals in the final.

Ultimate domination by beating Germany 8-1 in the final in their own backyard in Berlin 1936

It was the match that defined the Indian team's legacy in the Olympics. It was hyped that India had a genuine challenge for the first time in the Olympics history. Germany was unbeaten till the final just like India. By the end of the first half, India had a slender lead of 2-1. Everything changed in the second half. Dhyan Chand went berserk and scored four goals in the match to show why no one in the world was close to him.

India had to face the aggressive play from Germany in their own backyard. In the second half, India decided to play barefoot and did not even get closer to the opponents. They dribbled past the players and scored goals for fun. At one point, the players just held on to the possession and intentionally did not score goals to show that they could do it all day. The performance of India and Dhyan impressed even someone like Adolf Hitler.