India at the 1984 Summer Olympics

India at the 1984 Summer Olympics

India sent athletes to the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Indian Olympic Association organized the team.

Forty-eight athletes from India took part. There were forty-two men and six women. They competed in seven sports: athletics, boxing, hockey, sailing, shooting, weightlifting, and wrestling.

India did not win any medals. But these Games are remembered for the strong performances of Indian women athletes.

P. T. Usha almost won a bronze medal in the 400 m hurdles. She missed it by just 0.01 seconds.

Shiny Abraham became the first Indian woman to reach the semi-finals of an Olympic event. She ran the women's 800 m in a personal best time.

The Indian women's 4 x 400 m relay team reached the finals and finished in seventh place.

Background

The Indian Olympic Association began in 1927, but India first joined the Olympics in 1920 in Antwerp, Belgium. A man named Norman Pritchard from Calcutta also joined the 1900 Olympics in Paris, France. India joined as its own country in 1948 in London, England, and has been in every Olympics since then. The 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California, United States was India’s 15th time joining the games.

Competitors

India had 48 athletes at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California, United States. They competed in seven different sports.

Athletics

Main article: Athletics at the 1984 Summer Olympics

Eight Indian athletes joined in the athletics events. Shiny Abraham ran in the women's 800 m and the women's 4 × 400 m relay. Charles Borromeo ran in the men's 800 m, Chand Ram walked in the men's 20 km race walk, and Vandana Rao was in the women's 4 × 400 m relay. Gurtej Singh threw the javelin, while P. T. Usha and M. D. Valsamma raced in the women's 400 m hurdle and the women's 4 × 400 m relay. Geeta Zutshi ran in the women's 3,000 m.

Boxing

Main article: Boxing at the 1984 Summer Olympics

Two Indian athletes boxed at the 1984 Summer Olympics. Jaslal Pradhan boxed in the light welterweight group, and Kaur Singh boxed in the heavyweight group.

Field hockey

Main article: Field hockey at the 1984 Summer Olympics

India sent 16 athletes to play in field hockey at the 1984 Summer Olympics. They all played in the men's competition. The athletes were Joaquim Carvalho, Mervyn Fernandis, Zafar Iqbal, Marcellus Gomes, Iqbaljit Singh Grewal, Romeo James, Charanjit Kumar, Somaya Maneypanda, Jalal-ud-Din Syed Rizvi, Mohammed Shahid, Vineet Kumar Sharma, Hardeep Singh, Pangambam Nilakomol Singh, Rajinder Singh, Ravinder Pal Singh, and Manohar Topno.

Sailing

Main article: Sailing at the 1984 Summer Olympics

Two Indian athletes took part in the sailing events. They were Dhruv Bhandari and Farokh Tarapore. They competed in the 470 class.

Shooting

Main article: Shooting at the 1984 Summer Olympics

Eight Indian athletes took part in the shooting events. Soma Dutta competed in two women's events. Baljit Singh Kharab joined the men's 50 m pistol event. Mohinder Lal and Rajinder Kumar Vij both entered the men's 25 m rapid fire pistol. Bhagirath Samai competed in two men's rifle events. Mansher Singh and Randhir Singh took part in the trap event. Harisimran Singh Sandhu joined the skeet competition.

Weightlifting

Main article: Weightlifting at the 1984 Summer Olympics

Four Indian athletes competed in weightlifting. They were Deven Govindasami in the –56 kg group, Mahendran Kannan and Manikyalu Malla Venkata in the –52 kg group, and Kamalakanta Santra in the –60 kg group.

Wrestling

Main article: Wrestling at the 1984 Summer Olympics

Eight Indian athletes competed in wrestling at the 1984 Summer Olympics. They took part in different weight groups in freestyle wrestling. The athletes were Rohtas Singh Dahiya, Sunil Dutt, Jai Prakash, Gian Singh, Jagmander Singh, Kartar Singh, Mahabir Singh, and Rajinder Singh.