Straight, sprightly, he always turned up in his trademark formal suit with an eye-catching bright red pagdi and matching tie. I last met him on August 15 2018 at the Indian Institute of Sports in Vijayanagar, Karnataka. He was the chief guest, amongst a host of sports stars present there. He was the senior-most and without doubt, the most decorated. Ninety-five years old then, he unfurled the national flag, stood straight during the national anthem, always smiling.
That is how one will always remembers the man, who until Monday morning was the last of the living legends from Indian hockey’s golden era. Always smiling, always blessing everyone who met him. Later in the evening, he sat with the other guests at the gathering. His grandson Kabir, who was his shadow, caretaker, friend and companion all rolled into one was sitting next to him. He never left his beloved ‘nanaji’ alone even for a second, keeping a strict eye over him, ensuring he wasn’t tired or overdoing things. Balbir ate little and spoke softly. India’s lone triple Olympic medallist, was answering every query about his playing days patiently and in equal measure, thoroughly enjoying his evening tipple.
That was the last time we met. Late 2018 and 2019 saw him having an extended stay at the hospital in Chandigarh—suffering from bronchial pneumonia—at one point he was put on life support, too. But he fought it all and was discharged after 108 days. A thankful Kabir, paid obeisance at Shri Hemkunt Sahib Gurudwara in the upper reaches of Uttarakhand, taking up the arduous journey to express his gratitude to ‘Waheguruji’ for his nanaji’s recovery. Another health scare in 2019 left Balbir frail and weak before finally succumbing to a series of heart attacks, leaving his family and a legion of Indian hockey and sports fans heartbroken.
A striker, who till date holds the record for scoring the highest number of goals in an Olympic final - 5 in the 6-1 victory over Netherlands in the 1952 Helsinki Games, he was without doubt one of the greatest hockey players India ever produced alongside Major Dhyanchand. A member of the team that won the gold in 1948, 1952 and 1956 Olympic Games, his shirt number 13 was unforgettable. He was captain of the Indian team which won the gold in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. He was also the first sports person to be honoured with the Padma Shri. Over the years, he rued over the loss of some of his Olympic memorabilia including an Olympics shirt, a medal and few other things.
Gurbux Singh, member of the 1964 Tokyo Olympics gold medal winning Indian team in his tribute to Balbir Singh senior said, “We all considered him as the best scorer India ever produced. Very few people had the kind of scoring ability he had possessed.” Mercurial centre-forward Dhanraj Pillay tweeted his tribute saying, “No words of mine can express the sadness in my heart on the demise of Balbir Singh Sir, Three time Olympian. His simplicity touched many hearts in the World Hockey. I humbly extend my sincere & heartfelt condolences. May his soul RIP & give strength to his family.”
Olympian Jagbir Singh in his tribute said, “Deeply saddened to hear about the demise of our hockey icon, loving legend Balbir Senior ji. A soft spoken triple Olympic gold medal winner with a golden heart will be remembered by the sporting World as the greatest of all times. Heartfelt condolences & prayers.”
Olympic greatness apart, he was also the coach-cum-manager of the lone Indian team to have won the World Cup in 1975 in Kuala Lumpur. Born on December 31, 1923 in Phillaur, Punjab, his father was a freedom fighter. He played for Punjab Police in his earlier days before joining the Punjab Sports Department and retired from there as Sports Director. His talent was spotted by Harbail Singh, who was then coach of Khalsa College and later coached India to back-to-back gold medals in 1952 Helsinki and 1956 Melbourne Olympics.
Balbir has three sons and a daughter. His sons Kanwalbir, Karanbir, and Gurbir are settled in Canada while his daughter Sushbir is in Chandigarh. Post retirement he would spend half his time with the sons and half with his daughter but the last few years saw him spending more time in Chandigarh. His Sector 36 home is a museum full of the trophies and medals he won from his college days.
Known to be a calm and confident, be it playing or as manager of the Indian team, Balbir Singh represented the brightest days of Indian hockey. He was the only living connect to an era which everyone has heard and read about but not witnessed. Ajit Pal Singh, captain of the 1975 World Cup winning team said, “He was a very soft-spoken person whose only concern was playing and teaching hockey. He was a hard task master. I still remember how he imbibed, self-belief and unity which helped us to win the 1975 World Cup.” While he did not play with Dhyanchand, his abilities are considered at par with the hockey magician and the Chief Minister of Punjab, Capt. Amarinder Singh even wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to confer Balbir Singh Senior with the Bharat Ratna. As for the hockey legend himself, he never asked or demanded any honour and never expressed any bitterness either. He had a long and illustrious innings full of positivity. He leaves behind memories which are all good and an insurmountable legacy. Rest in peace sir, you will be missed.