National Sports Day: Celebrating Major Dhyan Chand’s Legacy and India’s Sporting Achievements

Today National Sports Day is being observed throughout India in memory of the birth of the legendary hockey player Major Dhyan Chand, the as well known as the Wizard of Hockey. Observed on the 29th of August annually, the day focuses on the value of sports and physical activities in addition to commemorating the role of Major Dhyan Chand to the Indian hockey and sports.

Key Highlights:

Tribute to Major Dhyan Chand:

• Today the Youth Affairs and Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya floral tribute to Major Dhyan Chand in the Major Dhyan Chand national stadium in New Delhi.

• The Minister recognized the legendary status of Major Dhyan Chand in the world of hockey and the contribution he has made to the Indian sport.

Fit India Movement:

• In a commemoration ceremony, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya will be the head of Fit India Pan-India Sports Movement up until August 31st.

• The national three day movement will be conducted in the theme, Ek Ghanta, Khel ke Maidan Main, where people will be encouraged to embrace fitness and sporting activities.

• There will also be sports activities in India involving leading athletes and representatives of the population to promote fitness and sports culture.

• Not just the legacy of Major Dhyan Chand but also the historic milestones in the sporting history of India are retrospected in the National Sports Day. The following are 17 proud moments that have come to characterize the Indian experience in sports:

India’s Sports achievement over the years

• 2025: Gukesh Becomes World No. 3 in Chess

  • Gukesh Dommaraju achieves a career-best Elo rating of 2776, becoming the third-ranked player globally after his impressive performances at the Norway Chess and Tata Steel Chess tournaments.

• 2024: Indian Men's Hockey Team Wins Olympic Bronze

  • The Indian Men Hockey Team wins a bronze in the Paris 2024 Olympics and beats Spain 2-1.

• 2023: Satwik-Chirag win BWF World Championships Bronze

  • The first-ever gold in men's doubles in BWF World Championships was won by Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty.

• 2022: Nikhat Zareen Wins World Boxing Championship Gold

  • Nikhat Zareen wins the 52 kg division of the IBA Women World Boxing championship.

• 2021: Neeraj Chopra Wins Olympic Gold

  • Neeraj Chopra is the first Indian Olympic winner achiever in the field of track and field at Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

• 2020: Koneru Humpy Named BBC Indian Sportswoman of the Year

  • Chess Grandmaster Koneru Humpy is made BBC Indian Sportswoman of the Year 2020.

• 2019: P.V. Sindhu Wins Badminton World Championships

  • P.V. Sindhu is the first Indian to take a gold medal in the BWF World Championships.

• 2018: Mary Kom Wins Record Sixth World Boxing Title

  • Mary Kom is the most decorated female boxer having six world championship golds.

• 2016: Dipa Karmakar Reaches Olympic Final in Gymnastics

  • Dipa Karmakar is the first Indian female gymnast to make an Olympics final.

• 2015: Sania Mirza Becomes World No. 1 in Doubles Tennis

  • Sania Mirza is now the No. 1-ranked women's doubles player after she won the Grand Slams with Martina Hingis.

• 2014: India Wins Men’s Kabaddi Gold at Asian Games

  • India is a dominant winner of gold in Kabaddi at the 2014 Incheon Asian Games.

• 2012: India Wins Six Medals at London Olympics

  • India records the highest number of Olympic medals ever with six medals at the London Olympics 2012.

• 2011: India Lifts ICC Cricket World Cup

  • India is the winner of the ICC Cricket World Cup playing under the leadership of M.S. Dhoni.

• 2010: Commonwealth Games are held in Delhi, India.

  • India is home to the Commonwealth Games in Delhi and the games present a big sporting infrastructure.

• 2008: Abhinav Bindra takes the first individual Olympic Gold of India.

  • India achieved its first individual gold of the Olympics in shooting with Abhinav Bindra in the 2008 Olympics held in Beijing.

• 1952: India Wins First Individual Olympus Medal- K.D. Jadhav.

  • In the Helsinki Olympics, K.D. Jadhav becomes India’s first individual Olympic winner in wrestling.

• 1951: India Hosts First Asian Games in New Delhi

  • India receives an invitation to the first Asian Games in New Delhi, and it receives its introduction into continental sport.

Conclusion

National Sports Day is the ceremony that honours the great sporting heritage of India, by celebrating the efforts and the persistence of the sportsmen across generations. Since the legacy of Major Dhyan Chand in hockey or the sporting feats of such athletes as Neeraj Chopra and P.V. Sindhu, the day reminds people of the attitude of persistence, cohesion, and achievement which characterizes Indian sport. It also encourages the country to go on in pursuit of more sporting successes with the encouragement of the youth to take up fitness and sporting culture.