India's Olympic Medal Winners: Complete Medal List

The correct answer is A, Norman Pritchard. At the Paris Games of 1900 he won two silver medals, in the 200 metres and the 200 metres hurdles, and the International Olympic Committee credits both to India, which makes him the country's first Olympic medallist. B is wrong because K. D. Jadhav won bronze in wrestling at Helsinki in 1952, which was the first individual medal won by an Indian for independent India but not the country's first medal overall; this is the commonest trap in the question. C is wrong because Dhyan Chand, though the greatest name of Indian hockey and a member of the gold-winning teams of 1928, 1932 and 1936, did not win the first medal; India's hockey gold run began twenty-eight years after Pritchard. D is wrong because Leander Paes won his tennis bronze at Atlanta in 1996, a full ninety-six years later.

The correct answer is B, Karnam Malleswari. She won the bronze medal in weightlifting in the 69 kilogram category at the Sydney Games of 2000, becoming the first Indian woman to win an Olympic medal of any colour. A is wrong because P. T. Usha, for all her achievement on the track, finished fourth in the 400 metres hurdles at Los Angeles in 1984, missing bronze by one hundredth of a second, so she never won an Olympic medal; this near miss is itself a popular question. C is wrong because Mary Kom won her boxing bronze at London in 2012, twelve years after Malleswari. D is wrong because Saina Nehwal won her badminton bronze at the same London Games of 2012. The order to remember is Malleswari in 2000, then Mary Kom and Saina Nehwal in 2012.

The correct answer is B, Abhinav Bindra. He won the gold medal in the men's 10 metre air rifle at Beijing in 2008, India's first individual gold in any sport and the first gold of any kind since the hockey team's win at Moscow in 1980. A is wrong because Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore won silver in double trap shooting at Athens in 2004, which was India's first individual silver but not a gold. C is wrong because Neeraj Chopra won gold in the javelin throw at Tokyo in 2020, India's first gold in athletics but thirteen years after Bindra's. D is wrong because Vijay Kumar won silver in the 25 metre rapid fire pistol at London in 2012. The pair to keep separate is Bindra for the first individual gold and Neeraj Chopra for the first athletics gold.

The correct answer is C, Wrestling. Khashaba Dadasaheb Jadhav won a bronze medal in freestyle wrestling in the bantamweight category at the Helsinki Games of 1952, the first individual Olympic medal won by an Indian for independent India; until then every Indian medal except Pritchard's two had come from the hockey team. A is wrong because India's first boxing medal came much later, Vijender Singh's bronze at Beijing in 2008. B is wrong because India's first weightlifting medal was Karnam Malleswari's bronze at Sydney in 2000. D is wrong because India's first shooting medal was Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore's silver at Athens in 2004. Wrestling has since become one of India's strongest Olympic sports, with eight medals in all, from Jadhav in 1952 to Aman Sehrawat in 2024.

The correct answer is C, eight. India won the hockey gold at six consecutive Games, from Amsterdam in 1928 through Los Angeles, Berlin, London and Helsinki to Melbourne in 1956, and then again at Tokyo in 1964 and Moscow in 1980, which gives eight golds in all. A is wrong because six is the number of consecutive golds, not the total, and that distinction is the usual trap in this question. B is wrong because no Indian hockey tally reaches seven as either figure. D is wrong because nine overstates the record; India has won no hockey gold since 1980, although the team took bronze at Tokyo in 2020 and again at Paris in 2024. Including the silver of 1960 and four bronze medals, hockey has brought India thirteen Olympic medals in all.

The correct answer is D, Moscow 1980. The Moscow Games gave India its eighth and most recent hockey gold, and it was also the last gold of any kind for India until Abhinav Bindra's shooting gold at Beijing in 2008. A is wrong because Melbourne in 1956 was the end of the run of six consecutive golds, not the last gold overall, since Tokyo in 1964 followed. B is wrong because Tokyo in 1964 was the seventh gold, not the eighth; it is a tempting answer for anyone who remembers only the consecutive run and the one that followed it. C is wrong because India won bronze, not gold, at Munich in 1972, as it had at Mexico City in 1968. The sequence worth memorising is six golds to 1956, then 1964 and 1980.

The correct answer is C, javelin throw. Neeraj Chopra won the gold in the men's javelin throw at the Tokyo Games, held in 2021 after a year's postponement, giving India its first Olympic gold in track and field and only its second individual gold of any kind. He followed it with the silver in the same event at Paris in 2024, becoming the first Indian track and field athlete to win medals at two Games. A, B and D are wrong because India has never won an Olympic medal in the discus throw, the shot put or the long jump, although Indian athletes have reached finals in them; Milkha Singh's fourth place in the 400 metres at Rome in 1960 and P. T. Usha's fourth in the 400 metres hurdles at Los Angeles in 1984 are the famous near misses in Indian athletics.

The correct answer is A, Hockey. Hockey has brought India thirteen Olympic medals, made up of eight golds between 1928 and 1980, the silver of Rome in 1960 and bronze medals at Mexico City in 1968, Munich in 1972, Tokyo in 2020 and Paris in 2024, which is more than any other sport and also accounts for eight of India's ten golds. B is wrong because wrestling, India's strongest individual sport, has eight medals, from K. D. Jadhav in 1952 to Aman Sehrawat in 2024, but none of them gold. C is wrong because shooting has seven medals, including Abhinav Bindra's gold of 2008. D is wrong because badminton has three, Saina Nehwal's bronze of 2012 and P. V. Sindhu's silver of 2016 and bronze of 2020. The order to remember is hockey, wrestling, shooting.

The correct answer is B, P. V. Sindhu. She won the silver medal in women's singles badminton at Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and the bronze at Tokyo in 2020, becoming the first Indian woman to win medals at two Olympic Games. A is wrong because Saina Nehwal won a single Olympic medal, the bronze in women's singles at London in 2012, which was India's first badminton medal at the Games. C and D are wrong because Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa, India's best known women's doubles pair, reached the Olympics but have not won a medal there, although they did win medals at the Commonwealth Games and the World Championships. Candidates should fix the badminton sequence as Saina in 2012, Sindhu in 2016 and Sindhu again in 2020.

The correct answer is C, Manu Bhaker. At the Paris Games of 2024 she won bronze in the women's 10 metre air pistol and a second bronze in the 10 metre air pistol mixed team event with Sarabjot Singh, the first time an Indian had won two medals at one edition of the Games. A is wrong because Sushil Kumar won two Olympic medals, a bronze in 2008 and a silver in 2012, but at two different Games, which makes him the first Indian to win individual medals at successive Olympics, a different distinction. B is wrong because P. V. Sindhu also won her two medals at separate Games, 2016 and 2020. D is wrong because Neeraj Chopra's gold and silver came at Tokyo in 2020 and Paris in 2024 respectively. Read such questions carefully: at one Games, or at two.

The correct answer is B, six. India's tally at Paris in 2024 was six medals, one silver and five bronze: Neeraj Chopra's silver in the javelin throw, Manu Bhaker's bronze in the women's 10 metre air pistol, the bronze she won with Sarabjot Singh in the mixed team event, Swapnil Kusale's bronze in shooting, Aman Sehrawat's bronze in wrestling and the men's hockey team's bronze. A is wrong because five is the number of bronze medals alone, which is the usual trap. C is wrong because seven was India's tally at the Tokyo Games of 2020, the country's best at any Olympics, which included one gold; candidates often transpose the two figures. D is wrong because India has never won eight medals at a single Games. Remember: seven at Tokyo with a gold, six at Paris without one.

The correct answer is C, Weightlifting. Saikhom Mirabai Chanu of Manipur won the silver medal in the women's 49 kilogram weightlifting category on the opening day of competition at the Tokyo Games, held in 2021, and it was India's first weightlifting medal since Karnam Malleswari's bronze at Sydney in 2000. A is wrong because India's wrestling medals at Tokyo were Ravi Kumar Dahiya's silver and Bajrang Punia's bronze, both in the men's events. B is wrong because the boxing medal at Tokyo was Lovlina Borgohain's bronze, in the women's welterweight class. D is wrong because India has never won an Olympic medal in archery, in spite of strong results at World Cup level. The seven Tokyo medals are worth learning as a set, since questions often ask for the sport attached to a name.