New Delhi, India, June 29, 2022: The Indian hockey community is mourning the death of one of the best right-halves of the 1970s, Varinder Singh, who passed away in Jalandhar on Tuesday, June 28. He was 75.
Singh was a gold medallist at the 1975 Kuala Lumpur World Cup and won bronze at the 1972 Munich Olympics. He was also part of the national team that won silver medals at the 1974 and 1978 Asian Games.
Hockey India tweeted: “In light of the tragic passing of the great hockey player Shri Varinder Singh, we pray to the Almighty to grant the departed person’s soul eternal rest and to provide the family members the fortitude to endure this irreparable loss.”
Varinder was born on May 16, 1947 in the village of Dhannowali near Jalandhar.
Ajitpal Singh, captain of the World Cup-winning side, recalls: “When Varinder came to the Indian hockey team, he was my roommate till our last tournament together. He was the gentle giant of the World Cup-winning team and the most disciplined and honest hockey player of his time.”
Ajitpal Singh added: “One of his strengths was the ability to control the ball wherever he was on the field. He would surprise defender with his speed.”
Varinder was recruited by Indian Railways in the late 1960s. He then went on to represent India for six years.
At the 1975 World Cup, Varinder played an important role in India’s 3-1 win over West Germany in the pool stage. “Such was Varinder’s speed and dribbling that we broke the German defence,” Ajitpal Singh remembered.
Varinder would later coach the Punjab and Sind Bank team. He was conferred the Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007. In 2008, he joined the Punjab sports department as a coach and worked at the grassroot level until last year.
Source: Indian Express
