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Major Dhyan Chand contributed Rs 650 to fund Indian hockey team’s Berlin Olympics tour

Major Dhyan Chand donated Rs 650 from his pocket in the Berlin tour fund on behalf of his own club Jhansi Heroes!

By Sujata Sarkar
Prime Minister Narendra Modi pays floral tribute to Major Dhyan Chand

New Delhi, Aug 30: It will be too tough for the current generation of sporting stars to think about bearing the expenses of the entire team if their federation faces fund crisis.

But one such unprecedented incident in the history of Indian sport, more precisely in the history of Indian hockey, was witnessed when Indian team was preparing for 1936 Berlin Olympics.

Before Indian national hockey team’s tour, the then national hockey federation had to accumulate fund. Initially, the top bosses in the federation were divided whether the national hockey team should be sent to Berlin to participate in the Olympics.

Later, they decided to send the team and started reaching out to the country’s Nizams, Maharajas, the noted industrialists, and the state associations to raise funds. It has been learned that in the beginning, the hockey federation did not receive any spontaneous response regarding the donations.

Amidst the anxiety, Major Dhyan Chand, who was the captain of the Indian hockey team, came forward. The 'hockey wizard' donated Rs 650 from his pocket in the Berlin tour fund on behalf of his own club Jhansi Heroes!

After Dhyan Chand’s donation, the amount of donation registered a surge. The federation had an initial estimation of Rs 45,000 for the 22-member team’s tour.

But according to the audit report of hockey federation, it was seen that Rs 50,360 was finally raised through the fund. In total, 53 heads including the individuals as well as state associations and Jhansi Heroes came forward to donate to the fund.

India, under the leadership of their charismatic skipper, won gold in Berlin Olympics and defeated hosts Germany in the final. Impressed with Dhyan Chand's wizardry with the hockey stick, Adolf Hitler even offered the major to play for Germany, which the former refused.

Major Dhyan Chand's son Ashok Kumar, while speaking over the phone from Jhansi told MyKhel,“My father was a different type of human being. Despite the fact that he had a stumpy earning, he did not bother to contribute for the hockey. He had even contributed while building up Jhansi Heroes. The club was formed in 1931 and within a period of just two years Jhansi Heroes became Beighton Cup champion with a lone-goal victory against Calcutta Customs.”

Dhyan Chand later mentioned that it was his one of the best performances in his career.

Story first published: Wednesday, August 30, 2017, 16:03 [IST]
Other articles published on Aug 30, 2017