Chandigarh: Indian hockey team captain and drag flicker Harmanpreet Singh is going to receive the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award today for his strong game and exceptional talent. Despite being a defender, Harmanpreet has often been seen celebrating after scoring a brilliant goal against the opposition team.
Apart from him, Germanjit Singh of Amritsar and Sukhjeet Singh of Jalandhar will also be awarded the Arjuna Award. The biggest achievements of Harmanpreet Singh’s career include a bronze medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, a gold medal at the 2023 Asian Games and a bronze medal at the Paris Olympics 2024.
The skill of drag flick was honed while working in the fields
Harmanpreet Singh was born on 6 January 1996 in a farmer family in Jandiala Guru Basti in Amritsar district of Punjab. In his childhood, Harmanpreet used to help the family in the fields and drive a tractor. While working in the fields, his hands honed the skill of drag flick. In 2011, Harmanpreet took admission in Surjit Academy of Jalandhar. Where experts Gaganpreet Singh and Sukhjeet Singh further honed his penalty corner skills.
Germanjit remained on bed for 2 years due to wrong vaccination
Hockey player Germanjit Singh will be awarded with Arjun Award today. There was a time when he was on bed for two years. Due to pain in his leg, the doctor gave him wrong vaccination due to which he had to take bed rest for 2 years, but his passion for hockey did not diminish. He went abroad and played after 2 years.
Australia, seeing his sports talent, offered him to play in the team with free PR, but he expressed his patriotism by choosing the Indian team. His father Balbir Singh is in Punjab Police and mother Kulwinder Kaur is a housewife.
Parents told that German was admitted in Khalsa Academy Mehta Chowk School Baba Kalan. His coach Sardar Baljinder Singh started training him in hockey in the third class itself. After that he got admission in Jalandhar Surjit Academy. He continued to train there.
A back injury forced Sukhjeet Singh to quit hockey
Sukhjeet Singh hails from Dhanowali village in Jalandhar. He is seen as the rising star of the Indian field hockey team. His stellar performance has earned him the honour of being part of the bronze medal-winning Indian team at the 2024 Summer Olympics and now being awarded the Arjuna Award.
Sukhjeet’s source of inspiration was his father Ajit Singh, who himself has been a hockey player. Sukhjeet, who scored his first international goal against Spain in the 2021-22 FIH Pro League, scored three goals at the 2023 FIH Hockey World Cup. He has been an integral part of the Indian teams that won gold medals at the Asian Champions Trophy and the Asian Games.
His success story is inspiring. Six years ago, a serious back injury temporarily caused him to lose the movement of his right leg. But with his passion and hard work, he not only returned to the field, but also represented the country on a big stage like the Olympics. Sukhjeet has overcome difficult situations and established himself as an excellent player and a source of inspiration.