Phadeppa Chaugule

At the 1920 Antwerpen Games Phadeppa Dareppa Chaugule became the first Indian athlete to compete in the marathon at the Olympics. Chaugule was born in the early 1900s to a family that owned agricultural lands and a printing press. During his childhood he first took up wrestling but ended up with an arm injury, forcing him to turn his focus to running instead. He maintained a strict daily routine including running barefoot for more than 50 kilometres per day.

Chaugule dominated in distance running events organised by the Deccan Gymkhana Club of Pune including winning a marathon race that took place in 1919. The following year he was part of India’s delegation to the 1920 Antwerpen Olympics where he first ran in the heats of the 10,000 metres. Three days later he ran in the marathon, finishing in 19th place.

Chaugule died in 1952. He was honoured with a postal cover in 2003 and the local Gymkhana Club in Belagavi organise the Chaugule Shield cricket tournament every year in his honour.

Personal Bests: 10000 – 34:45.0 (1920); Mar – 2-48:49 (1919).