Legendary Indian hockey player Charanjit Singh passed away on Thursday after suffering a cardiac arrest. 

The captain of India’s 1964 Tokyo Olympics gold medal-winning hockey team was 90 at the time of his death at his home in Una, Himachal Pradesh. 

“Dad was paralysed after suffering a stroke five years back. He used to walk with a stick but since the last couple of months, his health deteriorated and this morning he left us,” his younger son V P Singh told PTI.

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Childhood

The former mid-fielder was born on November 20, 1929, at Mairi village in Una district. He was an alumnus of Col Brown Cambridge School, Dehradun and Punjab University. After a glorious career in hockey, he worked as the director of the physical education department in Himachal Pradesh University in Shimla, reported PTI.

Hockey Victories and Recognition

Singh had led the Indian team to a historic victory in the 1964 Olympics. Prior to that, he was part of the teams that bagged the silver medal in the 1960 Olympics in Rome as well as the 1962 Asian Games. An injury in the 1960 games forced him to skip the final match against Pakistan, which India eventually lost. 

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The Padma Shree and Arjuna awardee had told Hockey India Flashback Series last year, “Winning two medals for the country has been a moment of pride and honour for me. You know, after winning the gold medal at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, we were accorded a warm welcome on our arrival at the airport, a lot of fans had assembled, and it was a very special feeling for every one of us.”

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“Hockey was a very popular sport in India. It was given more importance because of the rich history, and our country had dominated in this sport in early years. We had won many gold medals at a prestigious event like the Olympics, and that was the key reasons behind it,” he had said.

Family

On the personal front, his wife passed away 12 years ago. He is survived by two sons and one daughter. His elder son is a doctor in Canada. 

Singh’s last rites will be performed this evening in Una.

(With PTI inputs)