कुस्तीवीर खाशाबा जाधव फाउंडेशन
Est. 2024 · Section 8 Non-Profit · Maharashtra, IndiaOne bronze medal taught a new nation to believe.
We carry that flame forward.
On 23 July 1952, a wrestler from Goleshwar village stood on the Olympic podium in Helsinki — the first individual Olympic medallist of independent India. The Kusteeveer Khashaba Jadhav Foundation exists to complete his unfinished dream: world-class sport, built from India's soil, open to every child with the courage to try.
The Man Behind the Name
Khashaba Dadasaheb Jadhav
“The Pocket Dynamo”
Sent to Helsinki on money raised when his college principal mortgaged his own house, Khashaba Jadhav won bronze in bantamweight freestyle wrestling at the 1952 Olympic Games — the first individual Olympic medal ever won by an athlete of independent India. India would wait 44 years for its next.
His complete life story — the akhada at Goleshwar, both his Olympic Games bout by bout, the 151-bullock-cart homecoming, and the recognition still owed to him — is told in full at our dedicated legacy archive.
Learn about the life that inspired this mission →“A village emptied its pockets so one son could stand among the best in the world. He repaid every rupee — and gave a newly free India its first taste of individual Olympic glory.”The story of Goleshwar and Helsinki, 1952
Why We Exist
The Unfinished Dream
Khashaba Jadhav dreamed of building a world-class wrestling academy in his village, Goleshwar — a place where children like him would never have to beg for the chance to compete. He died in 1984 with that dream unrealised.
In August 2024 — four decades after his passing — his family and well-wishers incorporated the Kusteeveer Khashaba Jadhav Foundation as a Section 8 non-profit company to finish what he started: academies, grounds, coaching, athlete welfare and sporting heritage for the next generation of Indian champions.
Our Charter
What the Foundation Is Built to Do
Five objects, drawn from our Memorandum of Association under Section 8 of the Companies Act, 2013 — every rupee of surplus applied solely to these ends.
Academies & Champions
Promote, sponsor and open academies and centres for wrestling and 40+ indoor and outdoor disciplines — from kabaddi and kho-kho to archery, boxing and athletics.
Grounds & Infrastructure
Build and run grounds, stadiums, turfs, gyms and training facilities — with equipment, healthcare, wellness and coaching for every kind of game.
Welfare & Care
Render welfare services for players and communities — food camps, shelter, medical services, and physical and mental well-being support.
Partnerships & Livelihoods
Run entrepreneurship programmes and act as a platform with government and non-government bodies to deliver social and welfare schemes.
Research & Publications
Research, write and publish books, magazines and journals on the biographies of sportspersons — preserving India's sporting heritage.
Read the Full Charter
Our complete objects, governance and statutory registrations.
About the Foundation →Trust & Transparency
A Registered, Accountable Non-Profit
The Foundation is incorporated under Section 8 of the Companies Act, 2013 — the most rigorously governed form of non-profit in India. Profits and property may be applied only to our charitable objects; no dividend can ever be paid.
Section 8 Company
Licence No. 159574 · Incorporated 13 August 2024
CIN: U88900PN2024NPL233550
12A & 80G Registered
Income-tax registered charitable institution. Donations are eligible for deduction under Section 80G of the Income-tax Act, 1961.
NITI Aayog NGO Darpan
Registered on the Government of India's NGO Darpan portal.
Darpan ID: MH/2025/0608213
The Story Behind the Foundation
Learn about the life that inspired this mission.
Khashaba Jadhav's complete story — the village akhada, London 1948, the bout-by-bout record of Helsinki 1952, the homecoming, and the honour India still owes him — is preserved at our dedicated legacy archive.
Join the Mission
Every champion begins with someone who believed.
In 1952, a principal mortgaged his house and a village emptied its savings so one wrestler could reach Helsinki. Today, you can be that believer for the next generation.