Sports in India

overview of sports traditions in India

Sports in India are a part of Indian culture.

Indian field hockey team at the 1936 Olympic Games

India has many traditional sports such as kabbadi, kho kho, pehlwani, and gilli-danda. Also, there are sports which were imported from the West such as football, rugby union, cricket, golf, tennis, squash, hockey, Javelin throw, boxing, snooker, and billiards. Sports are popular with both participants and onlookers.

History

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The history of traditional sports is ancient.[1]

In general, the most popular sports in modern India are the ones which do not include bodily contact.[2] For example, cricket is the most important sport on television.[3]

In the regions of Bengal and Kerala, Association football is very popular.[2]

India has hosted international sporting events, including the 2011 Cricket World Cup.

Olympic Games

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Indian athletes have competed in 32 Olympic games in 19 countries.[4] The Indian national team has won gold medals in Summer Olympic Games, including

  • 1980—Field Hockey[5]
  • 2008—Air rifle, 10-meter competition.[5]

Commonwealth Games

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India has competed in many Commonwealth Games; and India was the host country to the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

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References

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  1. Banerji, Sures Chandra. (1977). A Companion to Sanskrit Literature, p. 768.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Menon, Dilip. M. (2006). Cultural History of Modern India, p. xvii.
  3. Asha Kasbekar, Asha. (2006). Pop Culture India!: Media, Arts, And Lifestyle, p. 166.
  4. SportsReference.com (SR/Olympics), "India" Archived 2020-04-17 at the Wayback Machine; retrieved 2012-8-20.
  5. 5.0 5.1 Timmons, Heather. " With India’s First Gold, Suddenly a Billion People Notice the Olympics," New York Times, August 11, 2008; excerpt, "Abhinav Bindra, 25, became the first Indian to win an individual Olympic gold medal "; retrieved 2012-7-13.

Other websites

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  Media related to Sports in India at Wikimedia Commons