State hockey players cornered Olympic glory

The year 2024 surely belonged to Punjab hockey when it came to sports as eight players in the Indian team that won a bronze at the Paris Olympics were from the state. And Mahilpur — the Mecca of football in Punjab — hosting an I League match for the first time added to the joy to the sports lovers.

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A total of eight players from the state contributed in India’s second consecutive Olympics bronze medal finish. After the 1972 Munich Games, it was for the first time that the Indian team won back-to-back medals in hockey at the Olympics.

Undoubtedly, the state had a larger share in the feat. Not only the eight players, but two more players from the state were kept on the stand-by for the Paris Olympics.

Manpreet Singh, Mandeep Singh, Hardik Singh Rai and Sukhjeet Singh from Jalandhar, Harmanpreet Singh, Gurjant Singh, Shamsher Singh and debutant Jarmanpreet Singh Bal from Amritsar won the historic medal for the country, while Jugraj Singh from Amritsar and Krishan Bahadur Pathak from Jalandhar were on the list of reserved players. The win turned out to be sweeter for Punjab residents, as the captain and his deputy both were from the state.

While the nation appreciated the state’s contribution in hockey, Punjab appeared on the national football circuit by hosting an I League match in Mahilpur, once a sport hub.

Interestingly, not a Punjab outfit, but the Delhi FC picked the newly built stadium as their new home ground. The Punjab Sports Department had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Mohali-based Minerva Football Academy to let the club use the stadium, perhaps for the first time in the state. The region, which is struggling to find the lost glory after the closure of the JCT Football Club, got a major boost as the stadium was jam-packed with spectators during the I League match.

The year also saw the government proposing setting up of 1,000 sports nurseries to nurture talent. The work on 260 nurseries has started in the first phase. As many as 19 players from the state, including six shooters, two athletes, a golfer and hockey players, participated in the Paris Olympics. In addition, three athletes from Punjab, a para-athlete, a para-badminton player, and a para-powerlifter, participated in the Paris Paralympics.

Under the sports policy launched in 2023, as many as 22 players received Rs 15 lakh each for preparation this year, amounting to a total of Rs 3.30 crore. The eight hockey players were awarded Rs 1 crore each, while the two reserves received Rs 15 lakh each. Other Olympians and Paralympians from the state also received Rs 15 lakh each.

Last year, as many as 11 prominent players were offered jobs in the state government. The state also organised the 3rd edition of ‘Khedan Watan Punjab Diyan’ in which nearly 5 lakh sportspersons from the state took part. For the first time, events for para-athletes were also held.