Know your Olympics - London Olympics 1948

India's first Olympic gold as a free nation -

London Olympics - India's first Olympic gold medal as a free nation

The London Olympics also saw the return of Great Britain to field hockey, and the arrival of India as a divided nation. For the first time, India competed as two separate nations, India and Pakistan.

Legend has it that as long as India competed in field hockey, Great Britain never competed. They were scared of being beaten by their own subjects. However, they decided to compete in the London Games for two reasons.

One, they thought that after the Partition, India wouldn't be the same team they were before independence. Two, they were of the opinion that the best of the talent was never in India anyway.

Most of them migrated to newly created Pakistan, including Ali Shah Dara, a celebrated member of the 1936 Berlin Olympics gold medal winning team.

However, they were proved wrong in style by India. In front of a strong home crowd at Wembley Stadium, London, on the evening of 12 August 1948, India whacked their former masters by 4-0.

Yes, you heard that right. 4-0 was the score, despite having a depleted team, with negligible funds, resources, and of course, jeers and jibes from all corners. India won their 4th consecutive Olympic gold medal, and the first Olympic gold as an independent nation!

Interestingly, during the match, a drizzle made the ground heavy. Finding it slippery, many players, including captain Kishan Lal, decided to play barefoot. When the score was 4-0, the English crowd cheered for the Indian team, goading them to make it half a dozen.

Though it did not happen, for the first time, the Indian national anthem was played at an international sporting event. For the first time, the now eponymous Indian tricolor was raised high at the Olympics.