By Satyaki Paul
The date August 29, 2021 marks the 116th Birth Anniversary of world renowned Olympian Major Dhyan Chand. His birthday on every year is celebrated as National Sports Day or Rashtrya Khel Diwas. He was a celebrated hockey player of his time period and had made numerous contributions for the development of hockey as a sport in our country.
Major Dhyan Chand (1905-1979)was born in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. He played a significant role in India’s three consecutive gold medals in the years 1928, 1932 and 1936 at the Olympic games. In 1956, he was honoured with the Padma Bhushan, the country’s third-highest civilian award.
Nonetheless, on the topic of biography of Major Dhyan Chand (Wizard Major) can be found all over the internet. So, in this article I would like to take a different step and discuss National Sports Day of India and the role of Major Dhyan Chand in promoting sports in India and Hockey in general. In this vein, I would present few questions and answer them in those regard:
Firstly, when was National Sports Day first celebrated in India? What is the special occasion on this particular day?
TheNational Sports Day was included in the list of celebratory days in India for the first time in 2012.The National Sports Day is also an occasion that sees the nation honour its sporting heroes with recognitions such as the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna (formerly called the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna), the Arjuna Award (recognises the achievements of the athletes in the seasons gone by) and the Dronacharya Award (best coaches in the country). The ceremony takes place at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, wherein the President of India takes on this day confers these awards to awardees.
Secondly, why do we celebrate National Sports Day?
The National Sports Day is celebrated to commemorate the birth anniversary of hockey legend Dhyan Chand Singh.
Thirdly, what is the national sports of India?
There is a popular perception amongst the Indian masses that hockey is the national sport of India, but it has not been officially recognised by the government of India yet after so many years.
Fourth, what are some of the important events which were conducted on this very day?
In this context, states such as Haryana, Punjab and Karnataka, among others, organise various sporting events and seminars aimed at spreading awareness about the importance of physical activities and sports in life. In due course, the government has also used this day as a platform to launch various sports schemes such as the Khelo India movement, which was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2018. These schemes now play an important role to develop the aspect of sports in our country.
Fifth, what is state of hockey in India in current context?
In Tokyo Olympics 2021, the Men’s Hockey team clinched a bronze medal, thereby winning its first Olympic medal since Moscow 1980, when it won its eighth gold in the sport. In contrast, the women’s hockey team came agonisingly close to winning a bronze of its own, which would have been its maiden Olympic medal. Nonetheless, India has won three other bronze medals, in addition to a gold and two silver medals.
Lastly, who are most likely to win this year’s award?
The Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award is presented to individuals who are outstanding performers, usually handed out to the Olympic medallist in an Olympic year. In current context, one among the other Indian star athletes including ‘Golden Boy’ Neeraj Chopra, who excelled at the Tokyo Olympics this year, is considered a strong contender for the award. Let’s find out which players are in the race for this award this year.
- Neeraj Chopra : Javelin Throw
- P.R.Sreejesh and Deepika Thakur : Hockey
- Ankur Mittal and Anjum Moudgil : Shooting
- Achanta Sharat Kamal : Table Tennis
- Shubhankar Sharma : Golf
- Jyothi Surekha Vennam : Archery
- Sunil Chhetri : Football
- Ravichandran Ashwin and Mithali Raj : Cricket
- Sai Praneeth and Srikanth Kidambi : Badminton
- Musa Sharif : Motorsports
KoneruHampi : Chess
