Comparing India's medal tally at the Commonwealth Games over the years

Despite the absence of sporting disciplines like shooting, tennis, archery and Greco-Roman wrestling, India recorded a fabulous campaign at the Commonwealth Games 2022 as the athletes returned home with an impressive 61 medals. India dominated in wrestling and weightlifting at the Games, winning a total of 12 and 10 medals in two sporting disciplines, respectively.

It was a year of some historic firsts for the Indian contingent at the Games as the country won a medal for the first time in lawn bowls. India also won their maiden Commonwealth Games medals in Steeplechase and race walk at Birmingham making it a memorable affair for the nation.

India's best-ever performance at the Commonwealth Games came in the 2010 games in New Delhi as the host nation. However, the country's impressive show in Birmingham can be a close second despite the medal tally being lesser than the 69 medals won in 2002 or 66 medals bagged in 2018.

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In 2010, India had won a total of 49 medals in the sporting disciplines that were missing in the Birmingham Games this year. If these medals are removed from the overall tally of 101, we are left with 52 medals, including 17 golds which are way below India's tally this year.

India made their debut at the Commonwealth Games in 1934 and have since taken part in each edition of the showpiece event barring 1950, 1962 and 1986. The country has so far won a total of 564 medals with a staggering 134 medals in shooting. India recorded their best finish at the Games in 2010 when the country grabbed the second spot on the medals table.

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Here is a look at India's performances at the Commonwealth Games over the years:

1934 - 12th

India made their debut at the Commonwealth Games in 1934 after missing the inaugural edition of the competition in 1930. Rashid Anwar won India's first medal at the Commonwealth Games in 1934 when he clinched bronze in wrestling.

1958 - 8th

India failed to win any medals at the 1938 Games in Sydney, Australia and the 1954 Games in Vancouver, Canada. Their medal drought came to an end in 1958 when India won two golds and a silver to finish 8th with a total of three medals. The legendary Milkha Singh won a gold medal in athletics while Lila Ram won gold in wrestling at the 1958 Games.

1966 - 8th

India once again finished 8th at the Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica in 1966. However, the country managed to reach double figures for the first time as far as the medal tally was concerned. India won ten medals at the 1966 Games, including 3 gold medals.

1970 - 6th

India further improved their rankings in the 1970 Commonwealth Games as the Indian athletes produced a better show in Edinburgh, Scotland. Indian athletes returned home with a total of 12 medals, including 5 gold medals as the country finished 6th on the medals table.

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1974 - 6th

India once again finished sixth on the medals table with 15 medals at the Commonwealth Games in 1974, in Christchurch, New Zealand. Indian athletes won four gold medals, and 8 silver medals in the competition.

1978 - 6th

India remained on the 6th spot once again at the Commonwealth Games 1978 in Edmonton, Canada with a tally of 15 medals at the showpiece event. Indian athletes won 5 gold medals, 5 silver and 5 bronze medals at the Games.

1982 - 6th

India's love affair with a sixth-place finish at the Commonwealth Games continued in 1982 as the country once again failed to break into the top five in Brisbane, Australia. Indian athletes returned home with a total of 16 medals, one more than the 1978 Games, including five gold medals.

1990 - 5th

India managed to break into the top five for the first time at the Commonwealth Games in 1990 when the country won an impressive 32 medals at the Games, including 13 gold medals. It was the first time, India managed to go past the 30-medals mark in the history of the Commonwealth Games. India dominated in weightlifting and shooting at the Games.

1994 - 6th

India dropped to the sixth spot once again on the medals table at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria, Canada. India won a total of 24 medals in the competition, including 6 gold medals - less than half of their gold medal tally at the 1990 Games.

1998 - 7th

India's performance didn't improve much at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Malaysia as the contingent returned home with a total of just 25 medals. India sipped further on the medals table to finish 7th at the Games.

2002 - 4th

The likes of Abhinav Bindra, Jaspal Rana, Kunjarani Devi and the Indian women's hockey team won gold medals in their respective sporting disciplines as India finished 4th with a total of 69 medals at the Commonwealth Games 2022, in Manchester, England. It was India's best-ever finish in the history of the Commonwealth Games at the time.

2006 - 4th

The Indian contingent continued its magnificent run at the Commonwealth Games in 2006, reaching the half-century mark once again in the medals tally. India won a total of 50 medals, including 22 gold medals at the showpiece event.

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2010 - 2nd

India's inspiring run continued at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. As the hosts, India delivered their best-ever performance in the Commonwealth Games history to breach the 100-medal mark for the first time and finish 2nd. India won a total of 101 medals at the Games, including a staggering 38 gold medals. India have never managed to reach 100 medals at the Games since 2010.

2014 - 5th

India dropped to the 5th spot at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland with a total of 64 medals in the competition. India managed to win only 15 gold medals at the 2014 Games.

2018 - 3rd

Indian athletes impressed once again at the Commonwealth Games 2018 in Gold Coast, Australia. India finished 3rd on the medals table with 66 medals, including 22 gold medals at the multi-sporting event. The likes of Mirabai Chanu, Neeraj Chopra, Sushil Kumar, and Manika Batra among others won gold medals in their respective categories in the 2018 Games.

2022 - 4th

India finished 4th at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham this year with a total of 61 medals, including 22 gold medals. It was a commendable performance by the Indian contingent as a number of sporting disciplines like shooting, tennis and archery were not part of the Games. The likes of PV Sindhu, Mirabai Chanu, Nikhat Zareen and Bajrang Punia among others won gold medals at the 2022 Games.