The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated the 37th National Games 2023 at Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Margao, Goa on 26 October 2023.
The 37th National Games were held in Goa from 26th October to 9th November, 2023. The National Games were held in Goa for the very first time.
Cities:
The National Games 2023, India’s own multi-sport event inspired by the Olympics, was held in five cities in Goa – Mapusa, Margao, Panjim, Ponda and Vasco.
Mascot:
The official mascot of the National Games 2023 was ‘Moga’, an Indian bison, which was unveiled in June 2023.
Participation:
- The 2023 National Games witnessed the participation of more than 10,000 athletes from across the country who competed in over 43 sports disciplines across 28 venues.
- Athletes from 28 states, eight Union Territories and Services Sports Control Board (SSCB) participated in the 37th National Games.
New Sports:
- Several new sports were added to the event, such as sqay, beach football, roll ball, golf, sepak takraw, kalaripayattu, pencak silat and Mini golf.
- Additionally, Yachting and taekwondo, excluded in Gujarat 2022, were back in Goa.
- Traditional sports lagori and gatka were included as demonstration sports.
Key Results of the 2023 Edition:
Raja Bhalindra Singh Trophy:
» Maharashtra won the Raja Bhalindra Singh Trophy by topping the National Games 2023 medal tally with 228 medals – 80 gold, 69 silver and 79 bronze.
- Raja Bhalindra Singh Trophy is given to the team that wins the most number of gold medals at the National Games.
- Maharashtra last topped the National Games medals table back in 1994.
Best Male and Female Athlete at the 37th National Games:
- Olympic swimmer Srihari Nataraj (8 gold, 1 silver and 1 bronze) was adjudged the best male athlete.
- Gymnasts Sanyukta Prasen Kale and Pranati Nayak (4 golds and 1 silver each) were adjudged the joint-best female athletes.
» As many as 29 teams won at least one gold medal at the National Games 2023. Ladakh and Meghalaya did not win any medal.
Medals won by States and Union Territories during the 37th National Games 2023:
| Rank | State/ UT/ Team | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | Maharashtra | 80 | 69 | 79 | 228 |
| 2 | Services | 66 | 27 | 33 | 126 |
| 3 | Haryana | 62 | 55 | 75 | 192 |
| 4 | Madhya Pradesh | 37 | 36 | 39 | 112 |
| 5 | Kerala | 36 | 24 | 27 | 87 |
| 6 | Karnataka | 32 | 32 | 37 | 101 |
| 7 | Manipur | 30 | 22 | 30 | 82 |
| 8 | Delhi | 29 | 26 | 67 | 122 |
| 9 | Goa | 27 | 27 | 38 | 92 |
| 10 | Tamil Nadu | 19 | 26 | 32 | 77 |
| 11 | Punjab | 17 | 26 | 32 | 75 |
| 12 | Assam | 14 | 20 | 22 | 56 |
| 13 | Rajasthan | 14 | 18 | 34 | 66 |
| 14 | Jammu and Kashmir | 14 | 14 | 18 | 46 |
| 15 | Uttar Pradesh | 11 | 24 | 36 | 71 |
| 16 | Odisha | 10 | 18 | 30 | 58 |
| 17 | Gujarat | 8 | 2 | 19 | 29 |
| 18 | West Bengal | 7 | 23 | 26 | 56 |
| 19 | Andhra Pradesh | 7 | 5 | 15 | 27 |
| 20 | Jharkhand | 6 | 5 | 14 | 25 |
| 21 | Arunachal Pradesh | 6 | 2 | 5 | 13 |
| 22 | Telangana | 4 | 10 | 11 | 25 |
| 23 | Chandigarh | 4 | 8 | 4 | 15 |
| 24 | Himachal Pradesh | 4 | 2 | 5 | 11 |
| 25 | Uttarakhand | 3 | 4 | 1 | 8 |
| 26 | Andaman and Nicobar Islands | 3 | 4 | 1 | 8 |
| 27 | Mizoram | 2 | 3 | 0 | 5 |
| 28 | Chhattisgarh | 2 | 2 | 16 | 20 |
| 29 | Nagaland | 1 | 3 | 4 | 8 |
| 30 | Bihar | 0 | 3 | 5 | 8 |
| 31 | Puducherry | 0 | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| 32 | Tripura | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 33 | Dadra and Nagar Haveli & Daman and Diu | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 34 | Lakshadweep | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 34 | Sikkim | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
About National Games of India:
- The National Games of India is often referred to as the Indian Olympics.
- The All-India Olympic Committee organized the first National Games in Lahore in 1924, before India’s independence. Then it was called ‘All India Olympic Games’.
- In 1940, the event was named ‘National Games’, which was hosted by Mumbai. Lucknow hosted the first National Games after independence in 1948.
- After the initial popularity of the Games, it saw a decline which led to the intervention of the IOA. The IOA introduced revised National Games in 1985, structured in the style of the Summer Olympics.