Athletics at the Commonwealth Games
Para athletics · Commonwealth Sport (the Commonwealth Games Federation)
Athletics has been held at every Commonwealth Games since the first, at Hamilton (Canada) in 1930. It is a core sport that every Games must include, with para athletics.
- Next
- Ahmedabad 2030
- Most golds
- Australia, 210; England, 201
- India
- India at Glasgow 2026
- 16 medals: 3 gold (all in para athletics), 7 silver, 6 bronze
- Cycle
- Every four years (no Games in 1942 or 1946)
India at the Commonwealth Games
Medals by Games
2026Gold: 3 · Silver: 7 · Bronze: 6Host: Glasgow
2022Gold: 1 · Silver: 4 · Bronze: 3Host: Birmingham
2018Gold: 1 · Silver: 1 · Bronze: 1Host: Gold Coast
2014Gold: 1 · Silver: 1 · Bronze: 1Host: Glasgow
2010Gold: 2 · Silver: 3 · Bronze: 7Host: Delhi
2006Gold: 0 · Silver: 2 · Bronze: 1Host: Melbourne
2002Gold: 0 · Silver: 1 · Bronze: 1Host: Manchester
1978Gold: 0 · Silver: 0 · Bronze: 1Host: Edmonton
1974Gold: 0 · Silver: 1 · Bronze: 0Host: Christchurch
1970Gold: 0 · Silver: 0 · Bronze: 1Host: Edinburgh
1966Gold: 0 · Silver: 1 · Bronze: 0Host: Kingston
1958Gold: 1 · Silver: 0 · Bronze: 0Host: Cardiff
India's golds
| Games | Event | Athlete |
|---|---|---|
| Cardiff 1958 | 440 yards | Milkha Singh |
| Delhi 2010 | Discus throw (women) | Krishna Poonia |
| Delhi 2010 | 4 × 400 m relay (women) | Manjeet Kaur, Sini Jose, Ashwini Akkunji, Mandeep Kaur |
| Glasgow 2014 | Discus throw (men) | Vikas Gowda |
| Gold Coast 2018 | Javelin throw | Neeraj Chopra |
| Birmingham 2022 | Triple jump | Eldhose Paul |
| Glasgow 2026 | 100 m T47 (para) | Dilip Gavit |
| Glasgow 2026 | Shot put F57 (para, men) | Soman Rana |
| Glasgow 2026 | Shot put F57 (para, women) | Sharmila Dhankar |
More about this tournament
Medal tables
All Games, 1930 to 2026 (top 10 of 55 nations)
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia | 210 | 175 | 149 | 534 |
| 2 | England | 201 | 215 | 193 | 609 |
| 3 | Canada | 87 | 104 | 137 | 328 |
| 4 | Kenya | 81 | 72 | 62 | 215 |
| 5 | Jamaica | 73 | 48 | 50 | 171 |
| 6 | South Africa | 44 | 40 | 35 | 119 |
| 7 | New Zealand | 40 | 51 | 54 | 145 |
| 8 | Nigeria | 27 | 31 | 29 | 87 |
| 9 | Scotland | 24 | 22 | 38 | 84 |
| 10 | Wales | 16 | 20 | 21 | 57 |
India: 9 gold, 21 silver, 22 bronze.
Glasgow 2026 (top 8 of 28 nations with a medal)
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia | 12 | 11 | 11 | 34 |
| 2 | Jamaica | 10 | 3 | 5 | 18 |
| 3 | England | 6 | 9 | 6 | 21 |
| 4 | Canada | 4 | 7 | 5 | 16 |
| 5 | Nigeria | 4 | 3 | 6 | 13 |
| 6 | Scotland | 4 | 0 | 3 | 7 |
| 7 | India | 3 | 7 | 6 | 16 |
| 8 | Kenya | 3 | 4 | 4 | 11 |
History
How it began
Athletics was on the programme of the first British Empire Games at Hamilton in 1930, in imperial distances (yards and miles); metric events came in from 1970.
Champions by era
Australia (210 golds) and England (201) are far ahead of the rest; Canada (87), Kenya (81) and Jamaica (73) come next.
India's story
India's first athletics medal, and first gold, was Milkha Singh's 440 yards at Cardiff 1958. India won 12 medals at its home Games, Delhi 2010, its most until Glasgow 2026 (16), where all three golds came in para events.
Firsts and facts
- First Games: Hamilton 1930.
- India's first gold: Milkha Singh, 440 yards, 1958.
- India's best haul: 16 medals at Glasgow 2026.