Rural India wins lion’s share of Asiad medals

This portends well for India at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, especially after the Rio Games yielded just two: a silver by PV Sindhu and a bronze by Sakshi Malik.

Another interesting fact that could help India prioritise where to invest for Olympic excellence is that 67% of the gold and silver winners are from India’s villages (in keeping with the country’s population distribution as per the 2011 Census); 27% are from the Services; and five of the nine individual gold medals have been won by athletes from Haryana.the 37 gold and silver medals are distributed between 54 athletes (including team events like 4x400m relay, the archery and squash teams, bridge pair and quadruple sculls in rowing).

But among the 54 winners, only 50% are covered under the government’s Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS), a monthly stipend scheme which also provides funds to athletes for training and exposure trips abroad.

This means, irrespective of the unpredictability inherent in sport, there is still work to be done in narrowing down on India’s best medal bets. The government funded 196 athletes under TOPS going into the Asian Games according to its list updated in July, 2018, and only 30 of them brought home a gold or a silver. The fact that another 29 were not part of the scheme shows there is room for improvement in judicious investment. The improvement of sporting infrastructure in the villages will be another key.

67% OF THE GOLD AND SILVER WINNERS ARE FROM INDIA’S VILLAGES, 27% ARE FROM THE SERVICES; AND FIVE OF THE NINE INDIVIDUAL GOLD MEDALS HAVE BEEN WON BY ATHLETES FROM HARYANA