Harbinder Singh is an Indian former field hockey player. He was part of the Indian hockey team that won the gold medal at the Tokyo 1964 Summer Olympics. In January 2024, he was awarded the Padma Shri award for his contribution to Indian hockey.
Contents
Wiki/Biography
Harbinder Singh (also known as Harbinder Singh Chimni) was born on Thursday, 8 July 1943 (age 80 years; as in 2023) in Quetta, Pakistan. After the partition of India in 1947, he came to India with his parents. His zodiac sign is Cancer.
An old picture of Harbinder Singh
He studied at Khalsa College in Amritsar, Punjab. He has served in Northern Railway.
Physical Appearance
Height (Approx): 5′ 9″
Hair Color: Gray
Eye colour: black
Family
parents and siblings
There is not much information about his parents. His brother, Harjinder Singh Chimni is also a former Kabaddi player.
wife and children
There is not much information about his marital status.
livelihood
Inter-University Championship
In 1961, he represented the state of Punjab in the Inter-University Hockey Tournament. In the same year, he participated in the National Hockey Championship in Hyderabad. He also participated in the National Hockey Championship in Bhopal in 1962.
olympics
In a career spanning 12 years, he represented the Indian hockey team in the Olympics three times. He was part of the Indian hockey team at the 1964 Summer Olympics held in Tokyo. He made the most of 5 field goals out of 9 and helped his team win the gold medal by defeating Pakistan in the final.
Harbinder Singh (second from right) during the Tokyo 1964 Summer Olympics.
At the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico, he won the bronze medal by scoring 6 out of 11 goals, including a hat-trick against Mexico. He was also selected as a center forward in the “World XI” following his exceptional performance at the Olympics. He again helped the Indian hockey team win the bronze medal in the 1972 Summer Olympics held in Munich, West Germany.
asian games
Harbinder Singh represented the Indian hockey team at the Asian Games twice as a player in 1966 and 1970 and once as a head coach in 1986. In 1966, he helped the Indian hockey team win the gold medal at the Asian Games in Bangkok. He captained the Indian hockey team at the 1970 Bangkok Asian Games and won a silver medal. In Seoul 1986, he served as the head coach of the Indian women’s hockey team at the 10th Asian Games, where the team earned a bronze medal.
International and National Hockey Championships
Harbinder Singh started playing for the Indian hockey team at the international level in 1961, when he was just 18 years old. During that time, he toured New Zealand and Australia as a part of the team. He led the Indian hockey team to win a gold medal in an international hockey tournament in Lyons, France in 1963. In 1966, he represented India in an international hockey tournament held in Hamburg, Germany. In the tournament he made 4 of 8 field goals and earned a gold medal for the team. The following year, he earned a bronze medal at the Pre-Olympic Hockey Tournament held in London. He participated in several national hockey championships from 1961 to 1972, where he played for Punjab State and Indian Railways teams and won 8 gold and 2 silver medals. He also served as the coach of the Indian Railways hockey team from 1975 to 1993 and helped the team win 8 gold and 4 silver medals in various championships during his tenure.
1975 World Cup winning Indian hockey team
athletic championship
Apart from hockey, he has also participated in some athletic championships. Harbinder Singh played for the Panjab University team in the Inter-University Athletics Meet held in Kanpur in 1959. In the same year, he represented the state of Punjab in the National Athletic Championship in Trivandrum. In the championship, he won the gold medal in the 4×100 meter relay race in the junior category. In 1967, he represented the Indian Railways team at the All India Open Athletic Championships in Sangrur, where he won the gold medal in the 4×100 meters relay race.
award
- Railway Minister Award in 1966
- Railway’s Best Player Award in 1972
- Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award 2019 and a cash prize of Rs 30 lakh along with a trophy
Harbinder Singh (right) receives the Lifetime Achievement Award from Kiren Rijiju
- Padma Shri Award in January 2024
medal
- Gold Medal in the Summer Olympics held in Tokyo in 1964
- Bronze medal in the 1968 Summer Olympics held in Mexico
- Bronze Medal at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany
- Gold Medal at the 1966 Bangkok Asian Games
- Silver Medal at the 1970 Bangkok Asian Games
- Bronze Medal at the Asian Games in Seoul 1986
Note: During his career, he won 36 gold, 8 silver and 4 bronze medals in various national and international competitions.
Facts/General Knowledge
- He had a deep passion for sports since childhood. He participated in many hockey and athletics championships during his school and college days. He once represented Cantonment Board High School, Jalandhar district in a football tournament.
- He served as a member of the Indian Hockey Federation’s selection committee for junior players for eight years (1980 to 1984 and 1994 to 1998). She was also part of the selection committee of both junior and senior players in the Women’s Hockey Federation from 2004 to 2009.
- He has been a member of several other committees such as Hockey India High Performance and Development Committee, Hockey India Disciplinary Committee and Hockey India Ethics Committee.
- He has also been the Chairman of Hockey India Masters Committee.
- He received congratulations from Hockey India after being honored with the Padma Shri award in January 2024. In an interview, Hockey India General Secretary Bhola Nath Singh expressed his gratitude and said,
On behalf of Hockey India, I congratulate Harbinder Singh. He will always be remembered as one of India’s finest center forwards who scored at will and won many awards for the country. He is still serving the game today, always ready to be involved in any capacity and that is very inspiring.”
Categories: Biography
Source: vcmp.edu.vn