A hockey player’s heartbreak: so near yet so far after three olympics in quest of a medal

Dilip Tirkey

For Dilip Tirkey, India’s most capped international hockey player with 374 matches so far, the Olympic Games have been a case of so near yet so far. In his 13-year-long international career, the Orissa and Air India full-back has won many laurels for the country, but never an Olympic medal despite participating in three successive Games between 1996 and 2004. Tirkey, widely regarded as one of India’s all-time great defenders, records his Olympic experiences.

ATLANTA (1996)
Being the baby of the team, I was not conscious of the importance of the Olympics. I played three matches, mostly as a substitute to captain Pargat Singh and Anil Aldrin. We started our campaign with a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Argentina but rallied well under the guidance of coach Cedric D’Souza to stake a claim for a semifinal berth. A draw against Germany would have seen us through, but we lost the do-or-die duel 1-2 and eventually finished eighth. I met many stars including Monica Seles, then the queen of tennis. Tennis is, incidentally, my favourite sport after hockey.

SYDNEY (2000)

It was the most memorable of the three Olympics I have participated in. We performed well on the field, experienced good times off it but, again, squandered the opportunity to win a medal. We had a very good side with forwards Dhanraj Pillay and Mukesh Kumar in fine form. I controlled the defence in association with my Orissa statemate Lazrus Barla and Dinesh Naik. Captain Ramandeep Singh and coaches Vasudevan and Bhaskaran planned everything well.

In our crucial match against Poland, a 2-2 draw would have landed us in the last-four round. I scored off a penalty corner rebound and India led 1-0 till the last minute. But with only 30 seconds to go for the hooter, Poland equalised (1-1) to leave India shattered. We eventually finished seventh.

Earlier, in our opening match, we led 2-0 but failed to defend the lead as hosts Australia fought back to tie the match 2-2.

Thereafter we beat Argentina and Spain, but lost to South Korea. I scored four goals in the Games and met US tennis star Serena Williams.

Prior to the Games, we had good preparation Down Under. We worked hard on our fitness and developed new strageties. The Indian community on the Gold Coast provided us good hospitality.

They served us excellent food, arranged outings to religious and tourist places.
I will never forget the roasted lamb that Garry and Harry served us at their home.

ATHENS (2004)
I led India with Gerhard Rach (Germany) as the coach. In the opening match, we were level 3-3 against Australia before losing 3-4 in the last minute. The defeat shattered the morale of the team. Nothing went well thereafter and the team finished seventh. Off the field, I spent time with US sprinter Maurice Greene and French tennis star Mary Pierce.