The Indian men’s hockey team achieved a historic milestone at the 2024 Paris Olympics by winning back-to-back bronze medals, a feat not seen since the 1972 Games. Out of the 16-member squad, 11 players now proudly hold two Olympic bronze medals each.
The medalists include skipper Harmanpreet Singh, goalkeeper PR Sreejesh, Manpreet Singh, Hardik Singh, Gurjant Singh, Mandeep Singh, Lalit Upadhyay, Sumit Walmiki, Shamsher Singh, Amit Rohidas, and Vivek Prasad.
This achievement marks a significant moment for Indian hockey, as the last players to win multiple Olympic medals were from the 1968 and 1972 squads.
The 1976 Olympics saw India miss the podium for the first time due to the introduction of artificial turf, and the 1980 Olympics were marked by India’s last gold medal, with no overlap from the previous bronze-medal team.
Since India’s debut in hockey at the 1928 Olympics, the country has produced 50 multiple Olympic medalists in the sport. Among them are Udham Singh and Lesli Claudius, each with four medals, 10 triple Olympic medalists including Dhyan Chand and Balbir Singh Sr., and 36 double Olympic medalists.
In addition to hockey, India boasts four multiple Olympic medalists in individual sports: Norman Richard (athletics), Sushil Kumar (wrestling), PV Sindhu (badminton), and Manu Bhaker (shooting). Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, a gold medalist in Tokyo, is anticipated to join this exclusive club after his event in Paris.