| Athletics in India | |
|---|---|
| Governing body | Athletics Federation of India |
International competitions | |
Olympic Games  x1  x3Paralympic Games  x8  x16  x13World Championships  x1  x1  x1Asian Games  x85  x102  x96Commonwealth Games x6 x14 x16 | |
In India, the Athletics was introduced during the period of the British Raj. The sport is governed by the Athletics Federation of India, which was formed in 1946.[1]
Despite the country's population, only a few Indian athletes used to win medals at global championships. This began to slowly change in the 21st century, when the citizens started taking a little more interest in athletics. The improvement in sport facilities was also another reason for its growth. India has been among the most successful Asian nations, only behind China and Japan.
At the national level, there are three major athletics competitions: the annual Indian National Open Athletics Championships and Indian Inter State Senior Athletics Championships (both first held in 1961), and the quadrennial National Games of India (first held in 1924).[2] An Indian National Championships event predated the Open and Inter State ones, being held from 1924 until 1961.[3] An Indian Marathon Championships was first contested in 1938,[4] while the Indian Cross Country Championships celebrated its 50th edition in 2015.[5] An Indian Racewalking Championships was established in 2014.[6] In addition to the main senior championships there are championships for under-20 and under-18 athletes at national and sub-national levels, as well as senior, non-championship competitions in the form of the Athletics Federation Cup and Indian Athletics Grand Prix tour.[7]
- ^ About Us Archived July 22, 2019, at the Wayback Machine. Indian Athletics. Retrieved 2019-06-29.
- ^ Indian Championships Archived September 17, 2018, at the Wayback Machine. GBR Athletics. Retrieved 2019-06-29.
- ^ National 10,000m Champions for India Archived October 22, 2021, at the Wayback Machine. Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Retrieved 2019-06-29.
- ^ National Marathon Champions for India Archived September 20, 2021, at the Wayback Machine. ARRS. Retrieved 2019-06-29.
- ^ 50th NATIONAL CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS-2015[permanent dead link]. Athletics Federation of India. Retrieved 2019-06-29.
- ^ Jitendra Singh wins National Race Walking Championship but falls short of Worlds qualification mark Archived February 18, 2019, at the Wayback Machine. Scroll (2019-02-17). Retrieved 2019-06-29.
- ^ Events (archive). Athletics Federation of India. Retrieved 2019-06-29.