Action from the 1964 Olympics final between India and Pakistan
At 93, one of Punjab’s oldest surviving links to Indian hockey’s golden era, Mann played in the gold-medal-winning team at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and the bronze-winning side at the 1968 Mexico Games. Mann’s international journey gathered momentum with the 1963 Lyon International Hockey Tournament in France, a key preparatory event ahead of the Tokyo Olympics. Despite his age, memories of the 1964 Olympic final against Pakistan refuse to fade.
The day I got my first chance, there was no looking back,” he told TOI. “We told him the game wasn’t over. JALANDHAR: Dharam Singh Mann may have put away his hockey stick decades ago, but his passion for the game remains undiminished. He vividly remembers the bruises, battles and bonds that shaped his journey. A retired Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) with Punjab Police, Mann began his journey on the village grounds, where his first hockey stick was his father’s. “I used to take his stick and wait for my turn outside the village ground. He also suffered a broken jaw after being struck by a rival’s stick. He remembers the care he received from hockey legend Udham Singh, who brought him homemade desi ghee-bone broth and fed him for days as he recovered. When the old rivals targeted India’s centre-forward Harbinder Singh, Mann and teammates Prithipal Singh and Gurbax Singh decided not to let the intimidation go unanswered. We would challenge them on the field like it’s war,” he recalled with a smile. India eventually prevailed, winning Olympic gold.