When did Milkha Singh miss out on an Olympic medal?

Over the years only a handful of Indian athletes have come close to a podium finish at an Olympic. One of them is the ‘Flying Sikh’ late Milkha Singh. His unbelievable run came at the 1960 Olympics when he missed out on a medal by a whisker.

Singh, the defending Asian Games 400-meter champion, was
one of the favorites, owing to his excellent results in continental
competitions as well as his impressive showing during the preliminary stages,
where he set a world record time.

Also Read | Neeraj Chopra wins gold, ends India’s 100-year wait for Olympic medal in athletics 

In the final, however, he came in fourth place, with
eventual victor Otis Davis of the United States set a new world mark of
44.9 seconds.

He was one of the trio that set the pace in the race and
appeared to be on track for a medal until about halfway through. Otis edged
over Germany’s Carl Kaufmann is one of the most thrilling finishes, with the
result declared utilizing full automated timing.

South African Malcolm Spence took bronze with a time of 45.5
seconds, while Milkha came up just 0.1 seconds short of a medal.

Milkha established a new national record in the race, but he
and the entire nation suffered a heartbreaking end.

Also Read | Who are the other Indians to win gold at the Olympics?

Milkha later admitted that he made the mistake of slowing
down at the 250-meter mark and was unable to keep up the pace after that.

Milkha went on to win gold in the 400m and 4x400m relay in
the 1962 Asian Games, following his disappointment in Rome. He competed for
India at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, but the team was eliminated in the 4x400m
heats.

Neeraj Chopra’s historic gold medal has put him in the limelight. The 23-year-old from Haryana became the first medallist in the track and field discipline in Olympic Games as he secured the top spot in the javelin throw event.