India's Olympic Heartbreak: A History of Fourth-Place Finishes

India's Olympic Journey: A History of Near Misses

India's Olympic history is marked by a series of tantalizingly close finishes, where athletes have come within a hair's breadth of the podium but ultimately fallen short. These near misses have left an enduring legacy of both agony and inspiration.

1956 Melbourne: Football

The Indian football team made a remarkable run to the semifinals, defeating hosts Australia in the quarterfinals. However, they were unable to overcome Yugoslavia in the semifinals and lost the bronze medal match to Bulgaria.

1960 Rome: Athletics

Legendary sprinter Milkha Singh narrowly missed out on a bronze medal in the 400m final. He slowed down to glance at his competitors, costing him a mere 1/10th of a second. This heartbreaking loss haunted him for the rest of his life.

1980 Moscow: Women's Hockey

With top hockey nations boycotting the Moscow Games, India's women's hockey team had a golden opportunity to medal. However, they narrowly missed out, losing their final match to the USSR and finishing fourth.

1984 Los Angeles: Athletics

PT Usha, known as the "Payyoli Express," came within 1/100th of a second of winning a bronze medal in the 400m hurdles. This was the closest an Indian athlete had ever come to a medal in any competition.

2004 Athens: Tennis

Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi, India's celebrated doubles pair, missed out on a bronze medal after losing a marathon match to Croatia. They had also lost in the semifinals to Germany.

2012 London: Shooting

Shooter Joydeep Karmakar finished just 1.9 points behind the bronze medal winner in the men's 50m rifle prone event.

2016 Rio de Janeiro: Gymnastics

Dipa Karmakar became the first Indian woman gymnast to compete at the Games. She finished fourth in the women's vault event, missing the bronze medal by 0.150 points.

2020 Tokyo: Women's Hockey

The Indian women's hockey team once again came close to a medal, but lost to Great Britain in the bronze medal match.

2020 Tokyo: Golf

Aditi Ashok, ranked 200th in the world, came agonizingly close to a podium finish in golf. She ultimately finished fourth.

These near misses have left a bittersweet legacy for Indian sports. They have shown the potential of Indian athletes to compete at the highest level, but they have also highlighted the challenges and heartbreak that can come with falling just short of the ultimate prize.

Tags: #Olympics, #India, #NearMisses, #Athletics, #Hockey