Corporate
Reliance Foundation Sports
School, college and football development, plus Olympic support
Runs the Odisha Reliance Foundation Athletics High Performance Centre with the Odisha government
Nobody wins
alone.
Behind India's medals are foundations, academies, non-profits, grassroots groups and public bodies that find athletes, train them and keep them in sport. Here are 41 of them, from Olympic high-performance centres to girls' football in rural Jharkhand. Every entry links to the organisation and to a source.
41Organisations
16Funding athletes
6Founded by champions
10Grassroots & para
10 organisations
Corporate foundations & high-performance centres
Company-funded programmes that run training centres, pay for coaching and sports science, and sponsor athletes from junior level to the Olympics.
Corporate · Since 2019
Odisha Reliance Foundation Athletics HPC
Residential athletics centre at Kalinga Stadium
Sprinter Animesh Kujur and hurdler Tejas Shirse train there
Corporate
JSW Sports
Funds Olympic-sport athletes; owns Inspire Institute of Sport
Backed Neeraj Chopra through his Tokyo 2020 gold
Corporate
Inspire Institute of Sport
Private high-performance centre for five Olympic sports
Avinash Sable: Asian Games 3000m steeplechase gold, 2023
Corporate · Since 1987
Tata Football Academy
One of India's oldest residential football academies
Corporate · Since 1996
Tata Archery Academy
Tata Steel's residential archery centre
Deepika Kumari, Atanu Das, Jayanta Talukdar and Limba Ram trained here
Corporate
Naval Tata Hockey Academy
Hockey from village grounds to a residential academy
About 1,200 children at 12 grassroots centres in Odisha
Corporate
Adani Sportsline (Garv Hai)
Funds individual athletes, para-athletes included
Lists Ravi Kumar Dahiya, Deepak Punia and R Praggnanandhaa among its athletes
Corporate
Anglian Medal Hunt Company
Finds medal prospects and lines up coaching and sponsors
Lists Deepak Punia, Harmilan Bains, K T Irfan and Ankushita Boro among athletes it has supported
Corporate
Dream Sports Foundation
Athlete aid, youth talent and academy grants
Funds the Mary Kom Regional Boxing Foundation
6 organisations
Non-profits backing athletes
Donor- and CSR-funded organisations that pick promising athletes and pay for what government schemes don't: specialist coaches, physios, equipment and international competition.
Non-profits · Since 2001
Olympic Gold Quest
Coaching and sports science for Olympic hopefuls
Four of India's six London 2012 medallists were OGQ-supported
Non-profits
GoSports Foundation
Backs junior Olympic and Paralympic athletes
Has backed Sumit Antil, Suhas L Y, Kidambi Srikanth and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy & Chirag Shetty
Non-profits · Since 2013
Virat Kohli Foundation
Pays for coaching, competition and nutrition
Has supported tennis player Sumit Nagal, golfer Diksha Dagar, swimmer Shivani Kataria and boxer Sakshi Choudhary
Non-profits · Since 2009
Lakshya Sports
Training and support for 80+ athletes in eight sports
Backed six Tokyo 2020 Olympians, including Pooja Rani, Simranjit Kaur and Sharath Kamal
Non-profits
Abhinav Bindra Foundation
Sports science, athlete mental health and girls' sport
Non-profits · Since 2017
Anju Bobby Sports Foundation
Long-jump and athletics coaching
Shaili Singh trained there from 14 and won World U20 long-jump silver in 2021
6 organisations
Academies founded by champions
Former Indian athletes who built the training centres they wished they'd had, and now coach the next generation.
Academies · Since 2004
Pullela Gopichand Badminton Academy
Gopichand's high-performance badminton academy
P V Sindhu, Saina Nehwal, Kidambi Srikanth and H S Prannoy
Academies
Centre for Badminton Excellence
Prakash Padukone and Vimal Kumar's academy
Lakshya Sen, who trained here from the age of 10
Academies · Since 2002
Usha School of Athletics
P T Usha's residential athletics school for girls
Tintu Luka, Olympian and Asian 800m champion
Academies
Mary Kom Regional Boxing Foundation
Free residential boxing for North East youth
Supports 87 athletes (own figures)
Academies · Since 2011
Gun for Glory
Gagan Narang's shooting academy
406+ international medals for its shooters (own figures)
Academies
Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools
Football schools and residential academies
Residential academy rated three stars by the All India Football Federation
7 organisations
Grassroots & sport for development
Organisations that use sport to keep children in school, build confidence and reach communities that rarely get a playground, let alone a coach.
Grassroots
Magic Bus India Foundation
Sport that keeps adolescents in school and leads to jobs
First Indian NGO to win a Laureus Sport for Good Award
Grassroots · Since 2009
Yuwa
Girls' football and schooling in rural Jharkhand
About 300 girls play daily
Grassroots · Since 2001
Slum Soccer
Football for children in informal settlements
Players and coaches for India's Homeless World Cup teams
Grassroots
Dream a Dream
Life skills through sport, the arts and teachers
3 million young people and 66,000 educators in 7 states (own figures)
Grassroots · Since 2013
Pro Sport Development
Community sport, life skills and gender programmes
Recognised by the International Olympic Committee in 2018
Grassroots
Anantapur Sports Academy
Rural sport pathway, from 96 centres to a sports village
Grassroots · Since 2010
OSCAR Foundation
Football and life skills for children aged 7 to 18
40,000+ children reached (own figures)
3 organisations
Para sport
The bodies and foundations behind India's fastest-rising source of medals, and behind sport for people with intellectual disabilities.
Para sport · Since 1992
Paralympic Committee of India
Selects and prepares India's Paralympic teams
India won a record 29 medals at the Paris 2024 Paralympics
9 organisations
Governments & national bodies
The national schemes and state governments that fund most of Indian sport, and the institutions that select and send India's teams.
Public bodies
Government of Odisha
Sponsor of India's hockey teams since 2018
Hosted the 2018 and 2023 Men's Hockey World Cups
Public bodies
Government of Haryana
Some of India's largest medal cash awards
₹6 crore for an Olympic gold; paid to Neeraj Chopra after Tokyo
Public bodies
KIIT & KISS
University and tribal school with a long sports programme
KISS rugby players have represented India
Public bodies · Since 2001
Army Sports Institute
The Army's Mission Olympics Wing
Neeraj Chopra trained through Mission Olympics before his Tokyo gold
Public bodies · Since 1984
Sports Authority of India
Runs national centres of excellence and schemes
Public bodies
Indian Olympic Association
Sends India's teams to the Olympics and Asian Games
Missing someone?
This list is a starting point, not a ranking, and inclusion isn't an endorsement. Figures marked “own figures” are the organisation's claims. Checked 1 October 2026. If your organisation should be here, or something needs correcting, tell us.