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At 93, the battles of Tokyo still live on in Dharam Singh Mann's memory

By · Via Times of India · Published by Everything Blog

In short

The former Olympian's athletic journey included a gold medal at the 1964 Tokyo Games and a bronze in Mexico four years later. During the 1964 final, Mann and his defensive teammates resisted intense physical challenges from Pakistan to protect their lead and secure victory. An off-pitch visit to a Japanese primary school left a lasting impression on him regarding civic responsibility. Mann applied this civic ethos throughout his post-playing career as an Assistant Sub-Inspector with the Punjab Police.

Key points

  • Dharam Singh Mann remains one of the oldest surviving representatives of Punjab's golden…: Dharam Singh Mann remains one of the oldest surviving representatives of Punjab's golden era in field hockey.
  • The veteran hockey player credited Japanese sporting success to the collective national r…: The veteran hockey player credited Japanese sporting success to the collective national responsibility he witnessed in school students.
  • Mann carried the lessons of discipline and teamwork from his sports career into his caree…: Mann carried the lessons of discipline and teamwork from his sports career into his career with the Punjab Police.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

JALANDHAR: Dharam Singh Mann may have put away his hockey stick decades ago, but his passion for the game remains undiminished. At 93, one of Punjab's oldest surviving links to Indian hockey's golden era, Mann played in the gold-medal-winning team at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and the bronze-winning side at the 1968 Mexico Games. He vividly remembers the bruises, battles and bonds that shaped his journey.

As Jalandhar, the heartland of Indian hockey, hosted the initial rounds of the Asian Champions Trophy, Mann served as a poignant reminder of a glorious legacy the sport must cherish and pass on to future generations.

A retired Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) with Punjab Police, Mann began his journey on the village grounds, where his first hockey stick was his father's. "I used to take his stick and wait for my turn outside the village ground. The day I got my first chance, there was no looking back," he told TOI.

Mann's international journey gathered momentum with the 1963 Lyon International Hockey Tournament in France, a key preparatory event ahead of the Tokyo Olympics. He…

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