Triple Olympian and humble soul Harbinder Singh gets his long due recognition when he was chosen for the Dhyan Chand Life Time Award (USD 43,000) at the 3rd Hockey India Annual Awards function today in New Delhi. Overall, a record Rs.1.64 Cr (USD 2,35,000) was given away as prize money in various categories including Player of the Year (Manpreet for Men and Rani Rampal for women). Expectedly, FIH Rising Player of the Year — Vivek Prasad and Lalremsiami — too among the awardees.

Hockey India Annual Awards was first held in 2015 at Delhi and in 2016 at Bangaluru before renewal after a 3-year break, today.

Its heartening to see the humblest soul Harbinder Singh’s life long contribution to hockey sport is truly recognized today. Apart from his hockey feats (an Olympic gold & twice Bronze), the triple Olympian was not in the limelight though many articulate peers of him got overdue recognition. It was attributed to his being quite a simple personal, steer clear of controversies. Hailed as the Flying Hockey Sikh, as he used to win sprints at the Inter-Railway meets, Harbinder had figured in three Olympics and three Asian Games (1966,1970 & 1974), winning medals in all.

This year, the total prize money was in excess of INR 1.64 Crore.

“I am extremely happy and humbled to be receiving this Award which carries Major Dhyan Chand’s name. Hockey has always been my life, and I continue to live it each day with pride and passion. I am thankful to Hockey India and all my hockey friends for this recognition,” said Mr. Harbinder Singh, who accepted the Hockey India Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award 2019.

The first set of awards marking important milestone in the careers of players began the proceedings. The Milestone Awards were presented to Deep Grace Ekka, Kothajit Singh Khadangbam and Savita for completing 200 International Caps for India, with a cheque of INR 1.00 Lakh each plus a trophy presented to the three players.

Harmanpreet Singh, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay and Nikki Pradhan were awarded for turning out in Team India colours for the 100th time and were all presented with a cheque of INR 50,000 each and a trophy.

The second set of awards were given in recognition of Individual Achievements of the players. Indian Men’s Hockey Team Captain Manpreet Singh was given a cash award of INR 10.00 Lakhs for winning the FIH Men’s Player of the Year 2019, while youngsters Vivek Sagar Prasad and Lalremsiami received a cash award of INR 5.00 Lakhs for winning the FIH Rising Star of the Year 2019 Awards in the Men’s and Women’s categories respectively.

Indian Women’s Hockey Team Captain Rani was also awarded with a cash prize of INR 10.00 Lakhs for winning the prestigious World Games Athlete of the Year 2019.

In the second part of the Hockey India 3rd Annual Awards 2019 function, players who have excelled in the year 2019 were recognised. The winners of the 11 Annual Awards were:

Hockey India President’s Award for Outstanding Achievement 2019: Deptt of Sports & Youth Services, Govt. of Odisha.
Hockey India Jaman Lal Sharma Award for Invaluable Contribution 2019: Sports Authority of India
,
Hockey India Baljit Singh Award for Goalkeeper of the Year 2019: Krishan B. Pathak,
Hockey India Pargat Singh Award for Defender of the Year 2019: Harmanpreet Singh,
Hockey India Ajit Pal Singh Award for Midfielder of the Year 2019: Neha Goyal,
Hockey India Dhanraj Pillay Award for Forward of the Year 2019: Mandeep Singh.

Each of the above individual awards carried a cash prize of INR 5.00 Lakhs besides a glittering trophy.

Apart from this, the following awards were also presented:

Hockey India Asunta Lakra Award for Upcoming Player of the Year 2019 (Women – Under 21): Lalremsiami
Hockey India Jugraj Singh Award for Upcoming Player of the Year 2019 (Men – Under 21): Vivek Sagar Prasad.

Each of the above two players received a cash prize of INR 10.00 Lakhs and a trophy.

The day came to a climactic finish with the presentation of the most eagerly-awaited Hockey India Dhruv Batra Player of the Year Awards for Men and Women, and the Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award.

Dr Narinder Dhruv Batra, President FIH, IOA and Member, IOC, spoke before awarding the winners: “I would like to congratulate Hockey India for their continued efforts of raising the bar for Indian Hockey to the highest of standards. Hockey has always been a very important part of India’s sporting history, and I am delighted to see that the game still has a high following in our country across states and regions. I am really proud of the players of the Indian Men’s and Women’s Hockey teams, who have consistently been performing for the country. Today is a day when we salute your hard work and efforts, and I congratulate all the winners in advance for putting in exceptional performances last year.”

It was Mr. Manpreet Singh and Ms. Rani who walked up to a thunderous applause to collect the Hockey India Dhruv Batra Player of the Year 2019 for Men and Women respectively. The winners of the most prestigious player’s awards for 2019 walked off the stage with a glittering trophy and a cash prize of INR 25.0
0 Lakhs each.

The final award for the day, the Hockey India Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award 2019, carrying a cash prize of INR 30.00 Lakhs and a trophy, was given to Harbinder Singh for his outstanding contribution to the sport of hockey.

Harbinder Singh’s Playing career Feats:

Gold Medal at 1964 Tokyo Olympics

Bronze Medal at 1968 Mexico City Olympics

Bronze Medal at 1972 Munich Olympics

Gold Medal at 1966 Bangkok Asian Games

Captained India at the 1974 Asian Games (Silver)

Harbinder Singh has close to 60 years association with the sport of Hockey and counting:

Chairman – Hockey India Masters Committee

Member – Hockey India Selection Committee

Member – Hockey India High Performance & Development Committee

Member – Hockey India Disciplinary Committee

Member – Hockey India Ethics Committee

“I’m really honoured to have won the Hockey India Dhruv Batra Player of the Year 2019 (Men). It was a great year for our team, and I would like to dedicate this Award to my teammates and Coaches, without whom, I would not be holding this trophy. I would also like to thank Hockey India for their continued support, and I hope this Award will motivate, not only myself, but more players to give their best for the country and bring more laurels.” said Manpreet Singh.

“I am elated to have been awarded with the Hockey India Dhruv Batra Player of the Year 2019 (Women). I have always strived to work hard for my team and my country, and to have been recognised for doing the thing that I love doing the most, it gives me immense happiness. I would like to thank my teammates, Coaches, family and Hockey India for always being a huge supporter, and being the guiding light. I dedicate this award to my team.” said Ms Rani.