Fans were over the moon with the 1948 success but there were doubts regarding whether the nation could repeat the 1928-1936 hat-trick.
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History suggests that the Olympic Games are not particularly a happy hunting ground for Indian athletes. Despite being a nation with the second-highest population in the world, top-notch athletes are something that the country has seen very few of. It might be because of the overwhelming importance put on cricket that pushes other sports to the back seat, or it might be just poor developmental and training facilities. Either way, it has been a very very long while since the country has excelled in any sport apart from cricket. The last time, really, India dominated a sport dates several decades back, to the golden period of Indian hockey from the late 1920s to the early 1960s when they won seven gold medals in 10 Olympics.
It was the golden period of hockey in the country. The nation was quite simply untouchable in the sport at the time. They won four consecutive gold medals in the sport at the Olympics from 1948 to 1956. The likes of Dhyan Chand, Balbir Singh Sr, Mohammad Shahid, and many others completely revolutionized the sport and for over a decade, ensuring that they were the best in the world. Of the names mentioned above, Balbir Singh Sr was the one that was present in the team that was part of the 1952 Games. It was a historic moment for the country and one of sheer joy and celebration. At that time, the Indian population was probably used to seeing their nation winning the gold in hockey. It had happened so many times before. They expected the team to bring home the hockey gold, and the team rarely disappointed.
India did not have to qualify from the preliminary stages like some of the other teams. It would be somewhat awkward if the defending champions had to go through an extra round of games. The champions advantage does ensue a free pass to the quarter-finals. It was not the first time that India would eventually go on to complete a hat-trick of Olympic gold medals in the sport, but it probably meant more to the nation and the players. The reason for that is they achieved the feat as an independent nation. Fans were over the moon with the 1948 success but there were doubts regarding whether the nation could repeat the 1928-1936 hat-trick. Well, Kunwar Digvijay Singh and his players proved to the world that they were there to stay, and stay they did.
It was not all roses and sunshine leading up to the Helsinki Games for the hockey team. The team had been finalized and KD Singh was chosen as the skipper with Balbir Singh as his deputy. However, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) at the time faced immense pressure from the state hockey associations of Uttar Pradesh and Bengal. Their demand was to include OP Malhotra and CS Gurung in the team respectively. This forced the IOA to include the duo, which subsequently impacted the team’s combination ahead of the Olympics.
It was pretty evident that the players had not gotten used to the new combination. In a match against Madras XI, the Indian team fell to a shock defeat. What was worse is that their skipper KD Singh was injured in that match. He collided with a Madras XI player and lost a few front teeth as a result. Immediately afterward, questions starting being raised about the team’s preparedness. After all, the whole nation was counting on them to win the gold medal. The side hen left for Copenhagen, Denmark for the preparatory camp. The main idea was to get used to the cold Nordic weather and the unfamiliar conditions they would encounter in Helsinki.
The nation’s victory was possibly even more impressive due to the fact that the players had absolutely no idea about the conditions in Helsinki. The city would experience daylight for 24 hours during the Olympics. Plus, 10 out of the 18 players traveling to the Finnish capital would be making their debut in the Olympics, so the pressure on them must have been intense. Reportedly, the time difference and the 24-hour daylight was having an extremely negative impact on the team. “Grandfather told me that the team would draw the curtains at all times and even used bedsheets to block out the light and make an entirely dark room to be able to get some sleep,” Kabir Singh, Balbir Singh’s grandson, told the Olympic Channel.
India started off their campaign at the Helsinki Olympics with a convincing 4-0 victory over Austria. It was a comfortable victory for a team as India, at the time, had a far better side than Austria. It was the semi-final victory that tasted the sweetest. They beat Great Britain 3-1. It is important to note that this Olympics was only five years after the country got its independence from Britain. There was always going to be an intense sense of patriotism and that of revenge. The team played with a never-seen-before intensity that left the Brits with no chance to take the advantage.
“We were a completely changed lot in the semi-final against Britain. We moved swiftly and smoothly and scythed their defence with copy-book moves,” Balbir Singh said about the match. However, that was not their best performance. They saved that for last. Usually, in the final of a big competition, people expect a tight contest. The Indians had absolutely no intention of making a neutral feel thrilled. All they wanted to do was win. And they did that in some style. India absolutely trounced the Dutch 6-1 to bring home the gold medal for the second time running and the fifth time overall.
When the team returned home, they were treated like heroes, like kings. And they deserved every little bit of it. It was a brilliant victory for the Indians and they did it with sheer dominance. It was a sign that they were going to dominate the hockey world for years to come.
