Hockey legend Balbir Singh leaves Indian sports world

At one time, the magic of Indian hockey pervaded the world. In front of Major Dhyan Chand like Everest, even the most stubborn person like Hitler of that time had to show a weak attitude. Balbir Singh Dosanji, the forerunner of Dhyan Chand, can be called the Kanchenjunga of the Indian sports world because of his greatness and glorious achievements. Tears will surely flow from the eyes of Indian hockey when Balbir Singh says goodbye to the world at the age of 9, who has always faced the storms of life as an attacking forward on the field of life like a hockey field.

Following Balbir Singh's magical appearance as a key figure in Indian hockey's self-proclaimed hockey at the Olympics, India achieved a special feat of winning gold medals in three consecutive Olympics, 19, 19 and 19. For India, which was breathing its first breath of liberation from the British Raj, winning hockey gold in a global competition like the Olympics was no less important than a great world victory. He was also part of the team that won silver in the 19th Asian Games. He was the team's manager when India won the World Cup for the only time in the history of the Hockey World Cup. Earlier, under his coaching, India won its first medal-bronze medal in the 191 Hockey World Cup.

India clinched the gold medal in the Olympic final played almost 50 years ago today (19 Helsinki) with a 2-1 victory over Holland (today's Netherlands). In that match, Balbir Singh, who was nailed to sixteen, scored five goals. No player has scored so many goals in an Olympic final since then. The first Olympics to be played after India's independence was the first Olympics of Balbir Singh's career, in which he scored six goals against Argentina in the first match of his career.

The record for most goals scored by Balbir Singh in the first Olympic match of his career at the age of just 30 is still intact. However, the unfortunate thing about hockey is that it does not have an army of state-of-the-art statisticians equipped with the latest technology that Indian cricket has, which has left most sportspersons aloof from the glorious statistical achievements of Indian hockey. Forgetting history does not damage its grandeur, but the present needs to be tormented by its own poverty. Hockey statistician B.G. Citing Joshi's record, a report states that Balbir Singh Sr. He scored 4 goals in 21 international matches in his 16-19 career.

The senior adjective behind Balbil Singh Dosanji, a great personality of the Indian sports world, has been applied because a total of six Balbir Singhs have played hockey for India so far. One of them was in the Punjab Police, while the other five were in the Railways. Interestingly, Balbir Singh Sr. along with two other Balbirs were also in the team that won bronze in the 19th Olympics. In one of the tournaments played in Madrid, Spain, Balbir Singh Sr., Balbir Singh Randhawa (who played a few tournaments in the 1980s) and two other Balbir Singhs from the Railways and Punjab Police played in the same team.

B.C. before independence. Born on December 31, 19 in Haripur Khalsa, Punjab, Balbir Singh's father's name was Dilip Singh Dosanji, while his mother's name was Karam Kaur. Balbir Singh's father Dilip Singh was a freedom fighter. At that time, the struggle for independence in the country was in full swing, while on the other hand, hockey stalwarts like Dhyan Chand were playing drums all over the world and it was having a profound effect on children and youth. Hundreds of youngsters in the country held hockey sticks in their hands as they watched the way Chand's army was swinging the top countries of the world, including the British, in the hockey fields. Balbir was also involved.

Balbir Singh learned the basics of hockey in Moga, East Punjab. After which he joined the Sikh National College in Lahore. However, due to his special talent as a hockey player, his talent was recognized and honed by Harbal Singh. Through which he joined the Khalsa College in Amritsar. It was a challenge for the defenders to stop Balbir, known for his aggressive hockey, in the area. The goalkeepers were horrified to see them. National Championship In pre-independence India, many players of the team who played together in the national championship became rivals from fellow players due to division. After independence, young Balbir Singh showed off his talent at the London Olympics in 1918 and India achieved a golden achievement.

Recalling the incident, Balbir Singh once said, "As a child, I used to ask my (freedom fighter's) father, 'What does freedom mean?' He then replied that freedom would give us our true identity, our national flag would give us pride and it would last forever. His words came to my mind when we won a gold medal in the Olympics at the age of 12. We beat Great Britain at Wembley Stadium, and I understood the true meaning of my father's words when the tricolor fluttered and the national anthem rang out in the midst of thousands.

After this he never looked back. Is. At the 19th Helsinki Olympics, he scored a hat-trick in the semi-finals and five goals against Holland in the final, which helped India win the gold medal 2-1. He was the flag bearer of India in this Olympics and interestingly, his t-shirt was number 12. When the Indian team went to Copenhagen, Denmark before the Olympics, a girl asked Balbir Singh, "Your t-shirt number is 12 and it is an unlucky number." Then Balbir Singh replied that even if the world considers it an unlucky number, for me it is a lucky number because in Hindi this number is called Tera.

Which is a form of God. Notably, India's total goals in those Olympics were 18. India then captained Balbir Singh in the 19th Melbourne Olympics and scored five goals in their first match against Argentina. After losing group matches due to injury, they finally returned to the semi-finals and final, giving the team a golden victory, the third Olympic gold of their career. India won the gold medal by defeating Pakistan 1-0 in the final. While Balbir Singh scored a total of 6 goals in his 3 Olympic matches.

Apart from the Olympics, there are many milestones in his career as an athlete. Following his success as a player in tournaments, including the Asian Games and the Hockey World Cup, he has made significant contributions as a coach and manager as well as an expert, the list of which could be a whole dissertation. Hockey was flowing in Balbir Singh's rug, the spirit of patriotism was running in his every breath.

Is. During the war between India and China in 1914, when the then Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri appealed for donations to the National Disaster Fund, Balbir Singh, without any hesitation, took his precious three Olympic gold medals to the then Punjab Chief Minister Pratap Singh Kairon and gave him his three. Giving away the Olympic gold medals, he said, "I don't have any savings, but take my medals." It belongs to the country and I am giving for the work of the country. He then kept the medals out of appreciation for Balbir Singh's spirit but later sent them back.

He was the team manager and also helped the players in strategy and training. Balbir Singh's father died while the Indian team was preparing for the 19th World Cup. While his wife Sushil was hospitalized due to brain hemorrhage. Yet Balbir Singh remained on duty with the hockey team. They took a day off from camp for Father's funeral. His sacrifice finally paid off and India defeated Pakistan 2-1 in the final to win the World Hockey Championship - the only world victory in the history of Indian hockey to this day.

Sushil was the wife of Balbir Singh, who devoted his entire life to national service and hockey. Even those who are no longer in this world. His three sons Kanwarbir, Karanbir and Gurbir have settled abroad. When he spent his last days with his daughter Sushbir and her family. With the departure of Balbir Singh, an entire era in Indian hockey seems to have come to an end. However, his glorious achievements and rare landmarks will continue to show hockey players not only in India but all over the world for years to come.