Chandigarh, Ta. Monday, May 25, 2020
Former hockey captain and three-time Olympic gold medalist Balbir Singh Sr. has died at the age of 96. He died at 6:17 p.m. Balbir Singh Sr. was admitted to Fortis Hospital in Mohali on May 8 due to ill health.
This time he was on the ventilator from the beginning and in the meantime he has had three heart attacks. His health was deteriorating day by day and then on Monday morning he breathed his last. Balbir Singh Senior lived in Sector 36 Chandigarh with his daughter Sukhbir Kaur and grandson Kabir.
Balbir Singh's three sons live in Canada. Balbir Singh Sr. has been ill for some time. He was also hospitalized last year and at the time he had won the battle of life.
Balbir Singh Sr. was instrumental in giving India gold in the London (1948), Helsinki (1952) and Melbourne (1956) Olympics. Balbir, one of the country's greatest athletes, was among the 16 Greatest Olympians in modern Olympic history selected by the Senior International Olympic Committee.
He led the Indian team to the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. India scored a total of 13 goals at the Helsinki Olympics, 9 of which came from Balbir's stick alone. It also included a hat-trick against Great Britain. He scored 5 goals against the Netherlands in the final. Which is a record in the Olympic field hockey final so far. India won the match 6-1.
Balbir Singh Sr. became India's captain at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. He was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India in 1957. He was the head coach of the Indian hockey team that won a gold medal in the 1975 World Cup.
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