Punjab’s Mithapur on cloud nine
Hard work of over 12 years has finally borne fruit for Manpreet and his teammates. We were hopeful for the gold but the bronze medal is equally precious. MANJIT KAUR, Manpreet Singh’s mother
We had visited Darbar Sahib in Amritsar on Thursday and prayed for the team’s victory. VARINDERPREET SINGH, Hardik Singh’s father
JALANDHAR : Moments after Indian men’s hockey team clinched the bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics on Thursday, celebrations broke out at Mithapur, the native village of captain Manpreet Singh.
Four members of the 18-strong team are from Jalandhar, with the other being Mandeep Singh, Varun Kumar (both from Mithapur) and Hardik Singh of Khursopur village.
Former Olympian and Congress MLA Pargat Singh also belongs to Mithapur. Residents of Mithapur rushed to houses of Manpreet, Mandeep and Varun to celebrate the medal. At Manpreet’s house, people danced in joy to the beats of the dhol as his mother, Manjit Kaur, congratulated the captain on the historic win over a video call.
Bronze equally precious, history made: Kin
“Hard work of over 12 years has finally borne fruit for Manpreet and his teammates. We were hopeful for the gold but the bronze medal is equally precious,” Manjit said. She said Manpreet didn’t call her up after losing the match to Australia. “He was upset, but I motivated him to focus on the bronze medal match,” she said. Manpreet’s father passed away in 2016, when he was in Malaysia for the tournament.
Mandeep Singh’s father Ravinder Singh agreed that it’s a historic occasion. “I’m proud of the boys, it’s the biggest ever gift.”
Relatives and friends gathered at Varun’s house as his father Bhrama Nand congratulated him on the victory. The families of the three players also paid obeisance at the local gurdwara.
Hardik’s father, Varinderpreet Singh, is posted as Batala superintendent. Khursopur residents exchanged greetings with the family after the match. Varinderpereet said, “We had visited the Darbar Sahib in Amritsar on Thursday and prayed for victory.