Name of the sportsperson: Dhyan Chand
Discipline: Indian Field hockey player, Played Centre Forward, also part of the Indian Army
State: Prayag , Allahabad, U.P.
Date of Birth: 29th August 1905
Achievements:
At an early age of 16 years Dhyan Chand was inducted into the Punjab Regiment as a Sepoy in the year 1922.
Dhyan Chand delivered brilliant performance in the first Inter-Provincial (National) Hockey tournament that was organized in the year 1925. Five teams, viz. United Provinces (UP), Punjab, Bengal, Rajputana and Central Provinces participated in the tournament. On the basis of his performance in the tournament, he was selected for the International Hockey team of India.
In the year 1926 Dhyan Chand was selected for the Indian Hockey team going to visit New Zealand at a tour
Adolf Hitler, the German dictator supposedly offered Dhyan Chand a higher post in the German Army than the one he was holding in the Indian Army, but he politely denied the offer.
- Won 3 gold medals in Olympic Games
- Awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1956.
For his extra-ordinary services to the nation, the Government of India celebrates Dhyan Chand’s birthday (29th of August) as National Sports Day. The Indian Postal Service issued a postage stamp in his memory, and the Dhyan Chand National Stadium at New Delhi has been named after him. He was honoured by the Padma Bhushan award by the Government of India in the year 1956.
Profile:
Dhyan Chand Singh was an Indian Hockey player, and considered to be the all time greatest player the game of Hockey has ever seen the world over. He has probably been the only Indian player ever in any sport which skills so high that generated a number of myths about his abilities as a Hockey player.
Initially known as Dhyan Singh, he had 2 brothers named Mool Singh and Roop Singh, the latter one too being an accomplished Hockey player. Dhyan could not resume his studies after 6th standard as his family used to move from one place to another, before finally settling down permanently at Jhansi. In his younger days, Dhyan was not much interested into sports although he liked wrestling a lot.
Pankaj Gupta was the first Coach of Dhyan Singh who predicted that one day he would shine like the Moon, called Chand in Hindi. Hence, Dhyan Singh came to be known as Dhyan Chand after that.
He continued playing since then till the year 1948, when he was 42 years of age. In 1951,Captain Dhyan Chand was honoured at the National Stadium—with Dhyan Chand tournament.Satinder Mullick remembers that Dhyan Chand took him and children of Capt.Kashmira Lal ,Sports secretary of Army Hockey Federation .Dhyan Chand was staying in Jodhpur Mess. He was admired by all at the National Stadium. In 1956, at the age of 51, he retired from the army with the rank of Major. The Government of India honored him the same year by conferring him the Padma Bhushan (India's third highest civilian honour). Till date, he remains the only hockey player to have received the Padma Bhushan. After retirement, he taught at coaching camps at Mount Abu, Rajasthan. Later, he accepted the position of Chief Hockey Coach at the National Institute of Sports, Patiala, a post he held for several years. Chand spent his last days in his hometown of Jhansi.
Dhyan Chand died on December 3, 1979 at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi. He was cremated at the Jhansi Heroes ground in his hometown, after some initial problems in getting clearance. His regiment, the Punjab Regiment, accorded him full military honours.
Even today, Dhyan Chand remains a legendary figure in Indian and world hockey. A number such legends revolve around the fact that Singh had a magical control over dribbling the ball. August 29, Chand's birthday, is celebrated as National Sports Day in India. The President gives away sport-related awards such as the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Arjuna Award and Dronacharya Award on this day at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
India's highest award for lifetime achievement in sports is the Dhyan Chand Award which has been awarded annually from 2002 to sporting figures who not only contribute through their performance but also contribute to the sport after their retirement. Dhyan Chand holds record for the most international goals, i.e. more than 1000.
