Google Doodle remembers KD Jadhav on his 97th birthday - Know who was he and what he did

Tech giant Google Inc on Sunday January 15 celebrates the 97th birthday of Indian wrestler, Khashaba Dadasaheb Jadhav through its Google Doodle.

Khashaba became independent India’s first individual athlete to win an Olympic medal at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki.

Google in its tribute to Indian wrestling legend said, “Happy Birthday to Khashaba Dadasheb Jadhav (aka the “Pocket Dynamo”)!”

Khashaba Dadasheb Jadhavor was born on this day in 1926, in the village Goleshwar in Maharashtra, India. His father was one of the village's best wrestlers, and Jadhav inherited his athleticism. A 10-year-old Jadhav started training as a wrestler with his father after shining as a swimmer and runner,  

Although Jadhav only grew to 5’5”, his skillful approach and light feet made him one of the best wrestlers at his high school, the tech giant said in its blog while explaining about KD Jadhav.

Jadhav won multiple state and national titles with further coaching from his father and professional wrestlers. He was especially great at dhak—a wrestling move where he held his opponent in a headlock before throwing him to the ground, as per Google’s blog.

Jadhav’s continued success earned the attention of the Maharaj of Kolhapur, during the 1940s. After he dominated an event at the Raja Ram college, the Maharaj of Kolhapur decided to fund his participation in the 1948 Olympic Games in London.

Jadhav wasn’t used to international wrestling rules and rarely wrestled on regulation mats.

The Olympics pitted him against the best and most-experienced flyweight wrestlers in the world.

Despite this, he managed to place 6th, the highest-ever finish for an Indian wrestler at the time.

Unsatisfied with his performance, Jadhav spent the next four years training harder than ever before. He moved up a weight class to bantamweight, which featured even more international wrestlers.

At the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, Jadhav defeated wrestlers from Germany, Mexico, and Canada before losing to the eventual champion.

He earned a bronze medal, becoming the first medal winner from independent India.

Crowds awaited his return home and a parade of bullock carts carried him through his hometown village.

Jadhav injured his knee before the next Olympics, which ended his wrestling career. He later worked as a police officer.

The Maharashtra Government posthumously awarded him the Chhatrapati Puraskar in 1992-1993. The wrestling venue built for the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games was named in his honor.