Moscow Olympic hockey gold medallists fall to Covid
LUCKNOW: It was a sad day for Indian hockey as two of its stalwarts, MK Kaushik and Ravinder Pal Singh, died due to Covid-19 complications. Both were members of the last Indian team to win Olympic gold, at Moscow in 1980. Kaushik, who scored a goal in India’s thrilling 4-3 win against Spain in the final of the Games, breathed his last in New Delhi on Saturday evening. Like Kaushik, Singh too succumbed to postCovid complications, breathing his last in a Lucknow hospital in the morning.
Kaushik, 66, is survived by wife and two sons. He has coached the Indian men’s and women’s teams with distinction. His biggest moment as coach came at the 1998 Bangkok Asian Games when he guided the men to gold after a 32-year wait. He helped a set of skilful players stay focused amid differences with the hockey federation headed by the late KPS Gill as India beat South Korea in a shootout in the final. Under his guidance, the Indian women clinched gold against odds at the 2002 Manchester CWG. The team also won bronze at the 2006 Doha Asian Games. Kaushik received the Arjuna Award in 1998 and the Dronacharya award in 2002.
Kaushik was suffering from severe lung issues and was put on ventilator support on Saturday, but breathed his last around 7pm. Family members said even after testing negative, Kaushik had remained in hospital for almost two weeks due to falling oxygen saturation levels. Kaushik tested positive for Covid-19 last month, and despite symptoms his RT-PCR tests returned negative on April 17. A week later, however, he was diagnosed with pneumonia due to coronavirus following a CT scan of the chest. His wife, too had tested positive but was released from hospital after testing negative on Friday.
Kaushik’s death came hours after his teammate Ravinder Pal Singh’s. A skilful centrehalf as a player, Pal, 61, was admitted to a Lucknow hospital on April 25. Singh had shown signs of recovery on Thursday. But his condition worsened on Friday afternoon.
“I haven’t seen such a great centre-half in my life. A swift mover with the hockey stick,” said Syed Ali, member of India’s victorious 1964 Tokyo Olympics hockey team.
Ravinder Pal Singh also played in the 1984 LA Games— India were fifth. Employed with State Bank of India, he played in the 1982 Mumbai World Cup and 1982 Asia Cup.