Jankidas Mehra: Unsung Indian Cycling Hero Who Challenged British Rule

He was Janakidas Mehra. You may remember him as the buffoonish villain character actor in old Hindi movies. Well, he was the only Indian Member in the International Olympic Squad from British Imperial Empire in 1936 Olympic Games and in 1934 and 1942 he broke the world record for Cycling!! In 1936 he won the cycling race event by breaking yet another world record at Berlin Olympics Games but on finishing the race he unfurled the Indian flag which the freedom fighters used to use. For this audacious act, he was disqualified and not given his medal. Then in 1942, he went on to break the world record once again and he called it quits as a matter of protest for freedom from the British!! He was the pioneer who formed the Indian Cycling Federation!! He died at the age of 93 years in Mumbai in 2003. Jankidas Mehra.. Another unsung Indian sports hero..

Courtesy Omprakash