Olympic performance of any sportsperson or a team is the most memorable memorable event in the lives of sportsperson & teams. It is these performances that fans and researchers come back again and again to recollect the memories. While Individual sports have impacted the nations, team sports have had the distinction of being the heart-throb of fans and nations. In Hockey, India did achieve similar feat when it stayed on the top of world for few decades, challenged in between here and there though. Today, we’ll talk about 8 Indian Hockey Captains who won Olympic Gold medals for India.
8. Vasudevan Baskaran– Moscow 1980
In 1980 Summer Olympic Games, Vasudevan Baskaran led India played six matches out of which they won four, while they drew two. Indian players went for absolute carnage against Tanzania & Cuba while they faced challenge against Poland & Spain. They had to be content with 2-2 & 1-1 tie against the two team. In their fifth match against hosts Russia, they won with a comfortable margin of 4-2.
On July 29, 1980, India and Spain entered the final of the Olympic Hockey tournament with all fans looking for their team to win. It was however India which prevailed in the competition of stickworks. India won the final 4-3 and hence the right to stand on the highest pedal of podium. Surinder Singh Sodhi gathered the most goals while Mohammed Shahid was the key play-maker. Baskaran was the most recent among the Indian Hockey Captains who won Olympic Gold Medals.
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7. Charanjit Singh- Tokyo 1964
In 1964 Summer Olympic Games, Charanjit Singh led India played nine matches out of which they won seven, while they drew two. India started with a comfortable 2-0 win over Belgium, but had to face challenge against Germany and Spain in the next two. They drew both games with 1-1 scoreline. In the fourth, fifth & sixth, they won comfortably against Hong Kong, Malaysia & Canada.
In the seventh match, they won 2-1 against Holland to fix semifinal against Australia. They won that 3-1 to enter final after eight years. On October 23, 1964, India & Pakistan were facing each other to decide the Olympic Champions with the entire Indian Subcontinent glued to the match. India prevailed in the game of skills and perseverance with a 1-0 score. Prithipal Singh gathered the most goals. And this win got Charanjit Singh feature into the list of Indian Hockey captains who won Olympic Gold medals.
6. Balbir Singh Senior– Melbourne 1956
In 1956 Summer Olympic Games, Balbir Singh Dosanjh led India went for a 5 matches winning streak till the podium finish. India started with 14-0 & 16-0 wins against Afghanistan & USA respectively, following up with 6-0 & 1-0 against Singapore & East Germany to qualify for gold medal match.
On December 6, 1956, Arch-rivals India and Pakistan played the final with India prevailing over with 1-0 score. Udham Singh Kullar gathered the most goals from the Olympics. This win got Legendary Balbir Singh Senior added to the list of Indian Hockey Captains who won Olympic Gold Medals.
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5. KD Singh Babu– Helsinki 1952
In 1952 Summer Olympic Games, KD Singh Babu led Independent India in their second participation into the Olympic Games. India played three matches from quarterfinals till the podium finish. While they won their first 4-0 against Austria, they won 3-1 against GB to enter the gold medal match.
On July 24, 1952, India and Holland played the match of skills ending only in India’s favor with 6-1 scoreline. Legendary Balbir Singh Senior not only scored 5 in the final, but gathered the most goals from the Olympic Hockey tournament. With this win, KD Singh Babu got added to the list of Indian Hockey Captains who won Olympic Gold Medals.
4. Kishan Lal– London 1948
In 1948 Summer Olympic Games, Kishan Lal led India to their first Olympic Gold medal as an Independent nation. India played five matches winning all five in their quest for the Olympic Gold. India won 8-0, 9-1 & 2-0 against Austria, Argentina & Spain respectively to face Netherlands in the semifinal.
They won 2-1 against Netherlands to schedule title clash with hosts GB. On August 12, 1948, India won the title 4-0 with Balbir Singh Senior scoring thrice as well as becoming the top goal scorer of the tournament. Kishan Lal was added to the list of Indian Hockey Captains who won Olympic Gold Medals.
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3. Dhyan Chand– Berlin 1936
In 1936 Summer Olympic Games, Dhyan Chand led India to their third Olympic Gold medal. India played five matches and won all with conceding just one goal in the entire tournament. It started with 4-0, 7-0 & 9-0 against Hungary, USA & Japan respectively to enter semifinal against France.
India won 10-0 in the semifinal to set a title clash with Germany. On August 15, 1936, India won with 8-1 margin with Dada Dhyan Chand scoring thrice. The win got Dhyan Chand into this list of Indian Hockey Captains who won Olympic Gold Medals.
2. Lal Shah Bokhari– Los Angeles 1932
In 1932 Summer Olympic Games, LS Bokhari led India to their second Olympic Gold medal. India played just two matches winning the first 11-1 against Japan. If India could win the second match, Bokhari would get added to the list of Indian Hockey Captains who won Olympic Gold Medals.
On August 11, 1932, India played the title match against hosts USA which India won 24-1. Roop Singh gathered the most goals, while Dhyan Chand came close second on goal scoring. The win got Lal Shah Bokhari added to the list of Indian Hockey Captains who won Olympic Gold Medals.
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1. Jaipal Singh– Amsterdam 1928
In 1928 Summer Olympic Games, Jaipal Singh led India to their first Olympics & first Olympic Gold medal. India played five matches winning all convincingly and without even conceding a single goal in the entire tournament. They won 6-0, 9-0, 5-0 & 6-0 in the first four matches against Austria, Belgium, Denmark & Switzerland respectively.
On May 26, 1928, India played their title match against hosts Netherlands only to win by 3-0 margin. Dada Dhyan Chand gathered the most goals from the tournament. This win got Jaipal Singh added to the list of Indian Hockey Captains who won Olympic Gold Medals.