Born in Meerut (Uttar Pradesh) on June 1, 1950, Ashok did not need any great motivation to pick up the sport, given that he was surrounded by hockey all the time.  The son of the legendary Dhyan Chand was as much a crowd’s delight as his father. A stick artist of extraordinary skills, Ashok Kumar shone on the Indian hockey scene throughout the 1970s, since he earned his India stripes at the 1970 Asian Games in Bangkok. Ashok Kumar was also the first Indian to play in four World Cups, posting the winning goal in 1975, India’s lone title in the event.  But he was mainly inspired by his brother Brijmohan Singh, a hockey coach at National Institute of Sports, Kota. With great skills and speed to match, Ashok started playing hockey in school. In college, he represented Rajasthan University (1967) and Combined Universities (1969) before shifting to Bengal to play for Mohun Bagan Club. In 1971 he played his first national championship for Bengal. When Indian Airlines decided to form a hockey team, he was among the first to join the company in the early 70s. He played the first of his four World Cups at the inaugural edition in 1971, and remained a permanent fixture in the Indian team till 1978. He won silver at the 1973 World Cup, gold in 1975 and bronze at the 1972 Munich Olympics. In 1979, he was made captain for the Esanda hockey tournament in Australia, which was also his last international assignment. Ashok Kumar was given the Arjuna Award in 1974 and continued to play domestic hockey for a long time. Post retirement from Indian Airlines in 2008, he took charge of the Madhya Pradesh State Boys Hockey Academy. Ashok also takes a keen interest in organizing hockey tournaments and exhibition matches.