At the 1900 Summer Olympics, twenty-three athletics events were contested. Altogether, 117 athletes from 15 nations competed. A total of 68 medals were awarded. In many countries, due in part to the conflation of the Olympic Games and the World's Fair in Paris, the media discussed only the athletics events under the "Olympic" name while ignoring the incredible variety of other sports featured at the time.
Theresa Ione Sanderson is a British former javelin thrower. She appeared in every Summer Olympics from 1976 to 1996, winning the gold medal in the javelin throw at the 1984 Olympics. She was the second track and field athlete to compete at six Olympics, and the first Black British woman to win an Olympic gold medal.
Norman Gilbert Pritchard, also known by his stage name Norman Trevor, was a British-Indian athlete and actor who became the first Asian-born athlete to win an Olympic medal when he won two silver medals in athletics at the 1900 Paris Olympics representing India. He won India's first medal at the Olympics in the 200 metres and the 200 metres hurdles.
The men's 200 metres hurdles was a hurdling event on the athletics programme at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris. It was held on July 16, 1900. 11 athletes from five nations competed in the middle of the three hurdling events. The event was won by Alvin Kraenzlein of the United States, earning his fourth individual gold in athletics in one Games—a record that still stands as of the 2016 Games. The silver medal went to Norman Pritchard of India, while another American earned bronze.
India first participated at the Olympic Games in 1900, with a lone athlete Norman Pritchard winning two medals – both silver – in athletics and became the first Asian nation to win an Olympic medal. The nation first sent a team to the Summer Olympic Games in 1920 and has participated in every Summer Games since then. India has also competed at several Winter Olympic Games beginning in 1964. Indian athletes have won 35 medals, all at the Summer Games. For a period of time, the Indian Men's Field Hockey Team was dominant in Olympic competition, winning eleven medals in twelve Olympics between 1928 and 1980. The run included eight gold medals of which six were won consecutively from 1928 to 1956.
Uwe Hohn is a retired German track and field athlete who competed in the javelin throw. He is the only athlete to throw a javelin 100 metres or more, with his world record of 104.80 m. A new javelin design was implemented in 1986 and the records had to be restarted, thus Hohn's mark became an "eternal world record". He coached Indian track and field athlete Neeraj Chopra, who won the gold in the men's javelin throw at the 2020 Summer Olympics held in Tokyo.
India competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, People's Republic of China. India was represented by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA). A contingent of 57 athletes in 12 sports represented India, and had a support-staff of 42 officials.
In India, the sport of athletics was introduced during the period of the British Raj. The sport is governed at national level by the Athletics Federation of India, which was formed in 1946. Despite its large population, few Indian athletes have won a medal in a global or major championship. This began to change in the 21st century, when Indians started taking greater interest in athletics more generally and improved facilities for the sport began to be built at a local level. At a continental level, it has been among the more successful Asian nations, though some distance behind China and Japan.
Hollie Beth Arnold, is a British parasport athlete competing in category F46 javelin. Although born in Grimsby, she now lives and trains in Loughborough. She represents Wales in the Commonwealth Games. Arnold was the youngest ever field athlete to ever compete in the Paralympics/Olympics, at the age of 14 at the 2008 Summer Paralympics in Beijing throwing a personal best. She also threw a personal best in 2012 Summer Paralympics in London. She took the gold medal in the F46 javelin in the 2016 Rio Paralympics, also throwing a new world record at the same time. In 2021, at the delayed 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, she took the bronze medal in the same event. In 2018, she became the first ever Javelin thrower in history to hold all four major titles in the same Paralympic/Olympic 4-year cycle: Rio Paralympics and world record 2016, London World Championships and world record 2017, Berlin European Championships and course record 2018 and Gold Coast Commonwealth Games and world record 2018. She also holds four consecutive world titles: 2013 Lyon, 2015 Doha, 2017 London, and 2019 Dubai.
Jakub Vadlejch is a Czech track and field athlete who competes in the javelin throw. He is a three-time Olympian for the Czech Republic, having competed in 2012, 2016 and 2020, winning a silver medal in 2020. He also has represented his country six times at the World Championships in Athletics, winning the bronze medal in 2022 and 2023 and silver medal in 2017, and four times a competitor at the European Athletics Championships. He also won the 2016 IAAF Diamond League title.
Johannes Vetter is a German athlete who competes in the javelin throw. He won gold at the 2017 World Championships in Athletics. His personal best of 97.76 m is the German record, and ranks him second on the overall list. Vetter currently trains under Boris Obergföll and is a member of LG Offenburg's track and field squad. He was previously with SV Saar 05 Saarbrücken and Dresdner SC.
Neeraj Chopra is an Indian track and field athlete, who is the reigning Olympic champion and World champion in Men's javelin throw. He is the first Asian athlete to win an Olympic gold medal and the first Asian to win gold in his event at the World Championship. A Junior Commissioned Officer Subedar (JCO) in the Indian Army, Chopra is the first track and field athlete to win a gold medal for India at the Olympics. He is also the first track and field athlete from India to win at the World Under-20 Championships, where in 2016 he achieved a world U20 record throw of 86.48 m, becoming the first Indian athlete to set a world record.
Anderson Peters is a Grenadian javelin thrower and the 2019 and 2022 world champion in the event. He is a multiple time CARIFTA Games champion at the discipline and in 2016 earned a bronze medal at the 2016 IAAF World U20 Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland, setting a new Grenadian national record and OECS record at the same time.
P. A. Amoj Jacob is an Indian sprinter who specializes in the 400 metres and the 800 metres.
Vipin Kasana is an Indian athlete who competes in the Javelin throw. He participated in the 2014 Commonwealth Games which took place in Glasgow, Scotland. At the 2018 Commonwealth Games he finished fifth.
Arshad Nadeem is a Pakistani javelin thrower. He represents WAPDA in the domestic competition. He is the first Pakistani to qualify for the final of any track and field event at the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships. At the 2022 Commonwealth Games, he created a new national and Commonwealth Games record with a throw of 90.18m and became the first ever athlete from South Asia to breach the 90m mark. In 2023, he became the first ever Pakistani athlete to win a medal at the World Athletics Championships, by winning a silver medal.
India competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. Originally scheduled to take place from 24 July to 9 August 2020, the games were postponed to 23 July to 8 August 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. India has appeared in every edition of the Summer Olympics since 1920, although it made its official debut at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris. The nation sent its largest-ever contingent of 126 competitors to the 2020 Games. To date, the 2020 Summer Olympics are the most successful Games for India since its first regular Olympics appearance in 1920, with Indian Olympians winning 7 medals. The Indian contingent participated in a record 69 events, and earned medals across 18 athletic disciplines.
The men's javelin throw event at the 2020 Summer Olympics took place on 4 and 7 August 2021 at the Japan National Stadium. Approximately 35 athletes competed; the exact number depended on how many nations use universality places to enter athletes in addition to the 32 qualifying through distance or ranking.
Sumit Antil is an Indian paralympian and javelin thrower. He won gold medals in men's javelin throw F64 category at the 2020 Summer Paralympics and the 2023 World Para Athletics Championships. He holds the current world record, having thrown 70.83 meters at the 2023 World Para Athletics Championships in Paris.
India has participated in the World Championships in Athletics since 1983. Their first ever medal was a Bronze medal won by Anju Bobby George in 2003 in Paris; in the Women's long jump discipline.
