Archive · 19 Jul 2026
Ex-Bank Clerk Builds India's Olympic Medal Factory
A long time ago, a man named Prakash Padukone was a bank clerk who also played badminton.
He won a big tournament in London, which showed that Indian athletes could succeed without government help.
This idea led him to start a special school for badminton players.
Later, he and his friends created more programs to help athletes from different sports.
These programs, like the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy and Olympic Gold Quest, have helped many Indian athletes win medals in big competitions like the Olympics.
They showed that private money and hard work can make Indian sports better, even without much help from the government.
Prakash Padukone, a former bank clerk, won the All England badminton championship in 1980, proving that Indian athletes could succeed without government support.
He co-founded the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy in 1994, India's first private, corporate-sponsored coaching academy, offering full scholarships to talented players.
Olympic Gold Quest (OGQ), a non-profit foundation, was established in 2001 to support Indian athletes across multiple sports with funding, training, and medical care.
The Padukone-Dravid Centre for Sports Excellence, a 15-acre multi-sport complex, was built by Vivek Kumar to provide top-tier training and facilities for athletes.
OGQ and the academies have produced significant results, including 13 out of 21 Indian Olympic medallists from London 2012 through Paris 2024 and 35 out of 48 Indian Paralympic medals at the Tokyo and Paris Paralympics.
- Who
- Prakash Padukone, ex-bank clerk and badminton champion, along with other key figures like Geet Sethi and Vivek Kumar
- What
- The establishment of private sports academies and non-profits to support and train Indian athletes, leading to significant success in Olympic and Paralympic games
- When
- Starting from Prakash Padukone's victory in 1980, with the academy founded in 1994 and OGQ in 2001
- Where
- Primarily in Bengaluru, India, with international training and competitions
- Why
- To provide professional training and support for Indian athletes, independent of government systems, and to prove that private sector involvement can produce champions
- Prakash Padukone
- Ex-bank clerk, All England badminton champion, founder of Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy
- Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy
- India's first private, corporate-sponsored badminton coaching academy
- Olympic Gold Quest (OGQ)
- Non-profit foundation supporting Indian athletes, founded by Prakash Padukone and Geet Sethi
- Padukone-Dravid Centre for Sports Excellence
- 15-acre multi-sport complex near Bengaluru airport, funded by Vivek Kumar
- Aparna Popat
- Badminton player, 9 consecutive National Women’s Singles titles, supported by Padukone’s academy
- Olympic Medallists
- 13 out of 21 Indian Olympic medallists from London 2012 through Paris 2024 were OGQ athletes
- Paralympic Medals
- OGQ-supported athletes won 35 out of 48 Indian medals at the Tokyo and Paris Paralympics