REMEMBERING THE HOCKEY WIZARD : DHYAN CHAND.
RAJNISH LOOMBA
115 th birth anniversary of Major Dhyan Chand falls on August 29. He was born as Dhyan Singh in 1905 in an armyman family in Allahabad , now known as Prayagraj.
His passion for hockey was visible to all since his childhood as he used to play with hockey sticks made from twigs of the trees. He joined army as a sepoy at the age of sixteen.
Subedar Major Bhalley Tiwari was his first coach to groom Dhyan Singh. Bhalley Tiwari taught him the finer and intricate points of the game. Dhyan Singh's devoted practice under moonlight always brought smile on the face of Bhalley Tiwari. He predicted that one day this boy will shine like a moon. As the moon is called chand in Hindi so he gave him the name Dhyan Chand.
Bhalley Tiwari's prediction came true. For his superb ball control, Dhyan Chand was given sobriquets of ' The Wizard Of Hockey' and ' The Magician Of Hockey'.
Dhyan Chand played a major role in 1928, 1932 and 1936 Olympics and helped India win gold medals in hockey. He scored more than 400 goals in his career. Along with his brother Roop Singh, also an Olympian , Dhyan Chand set up Jhansi Heroes Hockey Club. In 1933, he helped his club win the prestigious Beighton Cup. Final match was one of the rare occasions when Dhyan Chand did not score a goal. He considered this match to be the toughest match in his entire career.
It has been reported that Adolf Hitler offered him a senior rank in the German Army to which Dhyan Chand refused. Once a journalist paid tribute to him saying these words:
" This is not a game of hockey but magic. Dhyan Chand is in fact the magician of hockey."
He retired from army as Major in 1956. He is the only hockey player to be honoured with Padma Bhushan. Ashok Kumar also a legend in Indian hockey is son of great Dhyan Chand. An era came to an end on December 3, 1979 , when he breathed his last.
As a mark of respect his birthday i.e. August 29 is celebrated as National Sports Day . On this day, the President of India confers various sports awards such as Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratan Award, Dronacharya Award and Arjun Awards to sportspersons.
( Writer is a well known G.K. Tutor )