Chandigarh: The last of the hockey icons, Balbir Singh Sr turned 90 today, looking back with satisfaction at his long and rewarding tryst with hockey, which he calls his "first love", but sad at the state of the game in India.
Gentle and soft-spoken as ever, ramrod straight Balbir belies his years. Triple gold Olympian and a victorious Olympic captain, he was also the chief coach and manager of the team that won the one and only World Cup hockey title for India in 1975.
Chosen as one of the 16 "iconic Olympians" across all disciplines since 1896, the start of the modern Olympic era, Balbir was honoured by the International Olympic Committee during the 2012 London Olympics alongwith other great sportsmen such as legendary sprinter the late Jesse Owens.
