Thursday, July 10, 2008

VIJAI SINGH CHAUHAN -THE NATIONAL GOLD MEDALISTS


Vijai Singh Chauhan, born on 21 January 1949, at Jaitpur Kalan village in Bah tehsil in Agra district of Uttar Pradesh, was one of the best- all-round athletes the country has produced after the versatile Gurbachan Singh Randhawa. He completed his higher secondary from Bhind in Madhya Pradesh and then moved to Jiwaji University in Gwalior to graduate in Physical Education, A gold medallist in athletics from the National Institute of Sports in Patiala, Chauhan later did his M.A. from Kanpur University.Starting with the rare combination of the javelin and the 400 metres sprint in his university days, he spread himself to other events- With Cold Medals in the 110 metres hurdles, 400 metres, high Jump, long jump and javelin throw, he was awarded the Best Athlete award in the Inter-University Championships held in Jabalpur in 1968. He captained the athletics teams of Jiwaji University in 1967, Inter-University and Madhya Pradesh in 1968, Bihar in 1973-74 and Uttar Pradesh from 1975 to 1977- He made his mark in the National Open Meet at Bangalore and later created new national records in decathlon in 1970,71 and 72.Having established himself on the national scene he went to the Commonwealth Games at Edinburgh in Scotland in 1970 where an injury forced him to drop out of the contest. He made amends in the Asian Athletic Meet at Kuala Lumpur in 1971 with Gold Medals in the 1.10 metres hurdles and the tiring decathlon. Then came his most fruitful outing, the Munich Olympics of 1972 where he finished a creditable 17th out of 132 participants, totaling 7,378 points, a feat still to be matched by any Indian. Chauhan came close to matching the tally in the Teheran Asian Games in 1974. However with 7,375 points, he collected the Cold and broke the 16-year-old Asian Games record in decathlon. For his all-round effort, he was acclaimed the Best Athlete of Asia for 1972-1974, A year earlier, in the first Asian Track & Field Meet in Manila his impressive show in the decathlon had earned him a Gold and the titje of the "Iron Man of Asia". Early in his career he had won the national award for Physical Efficiency Drive at both junior and senior level and later, after a stint with the M.P. Police, moved on to TELCO in Bihar, a State he represented during the domestic season. He then served as Deputy Director, Joint Director and then Director of sports in the U.P. Government. In between, he served as Principal of Sports college in Lucknow and was the founder Principal of Sports College in Dehre Dun. He has written books on sports and one of his works "Athletics and Games", written in Hindi, has even won a national award. He was honoured with the Arjuna Award in 1972.Source : "India's Highest Sports Awards and Those Who Won Them" by S.S.Gandhi, The Defence Review

MAHESH BHUPATI - THE TENNIS STAR


Mahesh Bhupathi (born 7 June 1974 at Chennai in Tamil Nadu) is India's biggest server. And he proved that in his very first Davis Cup match when playing against Goran Ivanisevic of Croatia. Goran dished out 26 aces in his 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 win, Bhupathi responded with a near matching 18 aces, But what makes that particular tie, apart from the unbelievable collapse of the great server against Leander Paes, was the beginning of a Doubles combination, which was to shake the best in die world.It was a bold decision by the non-playing captain, Jaideep Mukherjea, to pair Leander and Bhupathi. And they hit it off immediately to give India a 2-1 lead. It was only the first of the big victories. In the space of next three years Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes reached the top of the world's Doubles ladder, Mahesh pausing in between to pick up the Mixed Doubles title of the French Open with Rika Hiraki of Japan. Mahesh first represented India in 1991 and was a finalist in the 1992 Wimbledon Junior Doubles Championship- He won the Chinese and Malaysian Satellite. Doubles matches in 1993 and the American Collegiate Tournament in 1994. The same year he won the Indonesian Open (Hard Court) Singles Championship. He was twice the National Champion in 1994 and 1995. He made his debut in the Davis Cup against Hong Kong in 1995 and paired with Leander Paes to win the Doubles of Aruba ATP Challenger. The same year, he won the team Doubles and Mixed Doubles matches in the SAF Games. He was a member of the Indian Davis Cup team which defeated Croatia in 1995. The same year he also qualified for the American Open Main Draw. Since his induction into the Indian Davis Cup squad, Mahesh, after a great victory over Gabriel Silberstein of Chile in the Davis Cup, has had a somewhat indifferent record as a Singles player but has more than made up with his effectiveness as a Doubles player, particularly in association with Leander Paes. He was presented with the Arjuna Award in 1995 and Padma Shri in 2001. The year 1997 was a big period for Mahesh when he climbed more than 200 places in Singles to break into the top 250 and move up to the top ten in the world of Doubles with six titles on the ATP Tour A march into the Semi-final of the U.S. Open earned them a fourth place at the end of the year. Towards the end or the period Mahesh and Paes, ranked 5, also improved upon their status by reaching the Finals of the World Doubles Championship at Hartford in the USA in 1998, a year in which they also reached the semi final of the Australian Open. The year 1999 of course was the best year of their career with the pair reaching the final of four successive grand slam events, winning the French and Wimbledon titles and still remaining at the No 1 in the world despite losing in the final of the World's Doubles Championships. Mahesh Bhupati and Leander Paes, who came together to play in the Olympics 2000, after eight months of estrangement, lost to the Australian pair Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge in the second round in Sydney. Tennis is very much a family matter with Mahesh, His father, C. G. K. Bhupathi, also favoring a double-handed grip, was on the fringes of the Davis Cup team. Mahesh's entry into the Davis Cup scene has given India the much-needed shot in the arm with a favorable verdict in the Doubles often being taken for granted. Source : "India's Highest Sports Awards and Those Who Won Them" by S.S.Gandhi, The Defence Review

DIANA EDULJI - WOMEN CRICKETER


Diana Edulji has grown up with women's cricket in India, The country entered the international arena with a Test match against the visiting Australian team in 1975. And Diana, a member of the team, had reasons to remember her debut. Six wickets for 48 followed •an unbeaten innings or 48. That was a start of a career that lasted 22 years, a period of consolidation in the history of women's cricket in the country. Born in Bombay (now Mumbai) on 26 January 1956, Diana had a natural flair for sports and grew up playing with boys of the Railway Colony. She played basketball and table tennis at national junior level and then shifted to cricket. Her initiation was in good hands. For a while she was in the camp where Lala Amarnath was coaching. And then there was the Mafatlal Nirlon Camp with all the top cricketers, men and women separately, at the nets. Her career actually took roots in 1971 when Mrs. Aloo Bamjee formed the women's first cricket club - "ALBEES" at the Cricket Club of India. Diana watched women's cricket grow, being very much a part of the scene when the Women's Cricket Association of India was officially launched in 1973 and the first National Championship was conducted in Pune in 1974. Diana was a member o£ the winning Bombay team. Since then she has played in 21 national championships, 14 of them for the winning combinations, three for Bombay and 11 for the Railways. An automatic choice for the Indian team, Diana Eduiji wore the national colours for 22 years without a break, playing against England, Australia, New Zealand, West Indies, Holland, Denmark and Ireland. She was a member of the team that won for India the first-ever Test series against West Indies in 1976, She captained the Indian side on a number of tours and also led the Indian team in two of the three World Cups she played. Though an all-rounder, she has had some outstanding performances as a left-arm spinner, being declared the best bowler in a number of series. Often called the "Bishen Bedi" of women's cricket. Diana holds the world record for the maximum number of wickets in Test Cricket, Her tally of 83 wickets in 23 matches is a record which is yet to be surpassed.Women's cricket in India owes much to Diana Edulji and the Women Cricket Association of India has set a rare precedent by playing a benefit match for her, the first woman cricketer to be so honoured, Diana has won many awards during her long career, the most cherished ones being the Shiv Chhatrapati Award by the Government of Maharashtra in 1979, the Arjuna Award in 1983 and Maharashtra's Gaurav Puraskar in 1991.Source : "India's Highest Sports Awards and Those Who Won Them" by S.S.Gandhi, The Defence Review

BISHEN SINGH BEDI - THE LEGEND


Born on 25 September 1946 at Amritsar in Punjab, Bishen Singh Bedi was one of the best left-arm spinners of his time and the most popular cricketer, both with the crowds and with his opponents, Christopher Martin-Jenkins described Bedi as "the most subtle and artistic slow left-arm orthodox bowler of his generation". He was one of the four famous spin quartet of Indian cricket: Prasanna, Venkat and Chandrasekhar being the other three. Bedi being of a different variety, he was always a permanent fixture, the other three often having to sit out a match or two. An alumnus of two prestigious colleges of Amritsar, Khalsa College and Hindu College, Bedi was honoured With the Arjuna Award in 1969 and the Padma Shri in 1970. He also has the distinction of being invited by the United Nations to speak against apartheid in sports, where he was introduced by the then Nigerian Chairman of the Committee as 'One of the finest spin bowlers in the world'.Encouraged by father Gian Singh, coached by Professor Gian Prakash and nurtured by his college captain, Gurpal Singh, later to play for Railways and Punjab, Bishen Singh Bedi was a rare success at both school and college level. His most outstanding display was recorded against Delhi in the North Zone Inter-University final at Meerut in 1965.Bedi began his Ranji Trophy career with North Punjab but later migrated to Delhi in 1968-69. He played 76 Ranji Trophy matches from 1961-62 to 1980-82, capturing 402 wickets and conceding 6,012 runs. His best bowling feat of 7 for 5 and 13 for 34 was performed against Jammu & Kashmir in 1974-75. He achieved a hat-trick against Punjab in 1968-69. He led his side in 47 Ranji Trophy matches. He also captained North Zone in the Duleep Trophy and led his side in three of the Irani Cup matched he played.Though he had already tasted cricket at the international level, having played for North Zone against the touring M.C.C, team under Mike Smith, his success story at the highest level began with a 6 for 139 performances for Board Prestdent’s XI against the all-conquering West Indies at the Ferozeshah Kotla ground 1966. So impressed were the selectors that he was promptly included to play in the Calcutta Test against West Indies the same year. That was the beginning of a career, which was to have a very big affect on Indian cricket in the next decade and more.Bedi played 67 Tests till 1979, bagging 266 wickets at the average of 28.71. He led India in 22 Tests. His most notable success was achieved during the series against Bobby Simpson’s Australian team. India lost a closely fought five-Test series 2-3 but more than anything contributed considerably to saving Test cricket after Kerry Packer had "hijacked" the world's leading stars.Source : "India's Highest Sports Awards and Those Who Won Them" by S.S.Gandhi, The Defence Review

MILKHA SINGH - THE ATHLETE


Flying Sikh Milkha Singh, a name to be weighed with times, is unquestionably the best track and field athlete India has ever produced . His records vouch for it. His national record in the 400 mtrs for 33 years and Asian record for 26 years, Milkha Singh became a household name when he clocked 45.6 to finish fourth at the Rome Olympic in I960.It was the closest any Indian athlete had come to winning an Olympic medal. He still retains the monopoly of the 200 meters, his 20.7 seconds clocked during the Indo-Pakistan meet at Lahore on the 31st January 1960.Born on 1931 in Layalpur in what now Pakistan, Milkha Singh was a child of the trauma of partition. His parents were killed in front of him. He carried the pain of this tragedy with him reaching Delhi, enrolled himself with the EME Corps of the Army. And with that began his affair with athletics.Encouraged by his officers, he soon to unfold his talent on the track went on to win the second prize 200 and 400 metres race at the Services Athletics Meet held in 1955.Practicing in his own name, he improved his performance to establish him as a front ranker at the 1956 National Games in Patiala. He won both the events and two years later, at the Cuttack Nationals, set national records in both. His 46.1 in 400 metres in the National Games in 1960 was acclaimed as a world class performance.He represented the country in the Melbourne Olympics in 1956, Still too raw, he was eliminated in the heats. But the experience stood him in good stead and prepared him for the Asian Games in Tokyo, Commonwealth Games in Cardif? and th Olympics in Rome. He won the 200 and 400 metres in the Asian Games with timings of 21.6 and 47 seconds respectively and went on to clock 46,16 seconds Ear the Gold in the Commonwealth Games. His Asian record of 45.63 seconds stood for 26 years before it was bettered by Japan's S u s u m u Takona.The biggest moment of his life came in the historic 400 metres race in the 1960 Rome Olympics. He was one of the favourites for the Gold and had had a fantastic run-up to the occasion, having won 77 of the 80 races, including the Commonwealth Games, that season. He would have surely won a medal at the Rome Olympics but for a tactical mistake. He was racing ahead of the field in the first 200 metres. But he misjudged his pace and in a split second, before he could revitalize thoughts, three others had sped past him.Source : "India's Highest Sports Awards and Those Who Won Them" by S.S.Gandhi, The Defence Review

KARNAM MALLESWARI - THE WEIGHTLIFTER


For Karnam Malleswari the Olympic Games in Sydney will forever be synonymous with a dream that was realized. It was here that this woman weightlifter achieved a rare feat when she won a medal in the 69-kg category. In her first outing in 69 kg after moving up from 63 kg, she hoisted a total of 240 kg, 110 kg in snatch and 130 kg in clean and jerk, to finish close behind China's Lin Weining and Hungary's Erzsebet Markus who bagged gold and silver respectively. Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee hailed Malleswari's world-class performance "a tribute to Indian womanhood”.Though a bronze only, it was worth its weight in gold. Coached by Belarussian coach, Leonid Taranenkohe, not only did she become the first woman from India to win an Olympic medal but also the third individual medal winner since the country started taking part in the four-yearly sports extravaganza. Not counting Norman Pritchard who won two silver medals in the Paris Olympics of 1900 and whose origin and nationality is still to be defined. Malleswari followed the example of wrestler Kashaba Jhadav in the Helsinki Olympics of 1952 and Leander Paes, the tennis star in the Atlanta Games, while claiming a bronze medal.While creating history she also wiped off the bitter memories of the pre-selection drama in India where at one stage there was even a hint of her not making the trip. But she defied carping critics, moved to a higher bodyweight category and more importantly performed exactly what was expected of her. Before her departure, Balbir Singh, a former national heavyweight champion and government nominee on the selection committee, virtually predicted the total weight she was to lift in the competition. She did exactly that. For a lifter moving from 63 kg to 69 kg and taking part in her first competition in this weight category, Malleswari by turning a medal performance far exceeded expectations. It must be mentioned here that women's weightlifting became a medal discipline only from the Sydney Games.Malleswari's bronze medal weighed that much heavier since it was the only one obtained by India in the Games. And for Malleswari it was an achievement of her life worth more in terms of cash and honour than the two gold and one bronze won at the World Championship held in China in 1994, In fact that was the first time that an Indian woman had held the world's stage in any sport.Born on 1 June 1979 at Voosavanipeta village of Srikakulam district in Andhra Pradesh, Malleswari had her school education from Z.P.P.G. High School in the nearby town of Amadalavalasa. Third in a family of six children of Rarndas, a constable with the Railway Protection Force, she took to the sport as a 12-year-old at her village gymnasium, following her elder sister Karnam Narasamma. Her younger sister Krishna Kumari is also a national level lifter. It was their mother, Shyamala, who gave her daughter the best of diet she could afford and accompanied them to competitions. Source : "India's Highest Sports Awards and Those Who Won Them" by S.S.Gandhi, The Defence

VISWANATHAN ANAND (THE CHESS MASTERPIECE)


Viswanathan Anand, popularly known as Vishy', is one of the most dazzling talents on the chess universe today. he makes his moves with such speed that it has earned him the sobriquet 'lightning kid' on the chess circuit. At 13, he defeated the legendary Manuel Aaron. At 14, he was awarded FIDE Master's title. At 15, he became the youngest Asian to win the International Master's title. At 16, he was the youngest winner of the national title and youngest to receive the Arjuna Award. At 17, he became the first Asian to bag the World Junior Chess Championship, a title that has traditionally been the preserve of men like Boris Spassky, Anatoly Karpov and Garry Kasparov. At 18, he was conferred the Hony. Doctorate by the Jawaharlal Technology University and awarded the Padrna Shri. Anand is also the recipient of the Soviet Land Nehru award from Sportstar and Sportswortd. He was conferred with the Padma Bhushan in 2001.Born at Madras (now Chennai) in Tamil Nadu on 11 December 1969, Vishy learnt the basics of the game from his mother Susheela during his father K. Viswanathan's stint as a railway consultant (1979-1981) to the Philippines, a country known for its tremendous involvement in chess. Young Anand would be glued to the TV to watch the feature "Chess Today" and would respond regularly to the puzzles shown in the programme. He even won prizes for his solutions.On return to Madras in 1981, he joined the Tal Chess Club run by the Russian Consulate. The 12-year old Anand - now a seventh class student of Don Bosco School - claimed a double in the local Kastauri Cup Tournament. In 1983, he won two All-India open tournaments in Madras and Sivakasi. He won the National Sub-Junior Championship in 1983 and 1984 and set a new record by scoring 9/9 points. He represented Madras colts in the Nationals in Bombay where he defeated Manuel Aaron.He bagged the National Junior Championship (under-19) from 1983 to 1986 and Asian Junior (under-19) in 1984 and 1985, earning the title of International Master at the age of 15, thus becoming the youngest Asian ever to receive the International Masters epaulettes. He twice pocketed the Lloyd Bank Junior title (1984 & 1985), won the Arab-Asian International in 1986 and became the youngest ever player to win the National ‘A’ Chess Championship in 1986, a feat he was to repeat in 1987 and 1988. Fittingly, Philippines was the country he returned to win the Junior World title in 1987. A voracious reader, Anand has awesome grasp over the game's theory. His strengths lie primarily in memory and progressive thinking. Some believe that he knows by heart 'Sokohoski Information', the bible of the chess updated every year, and can recall every move of the games he had seen years ago. With only 42 days' attendance in the final year at Don Bosco School, he passed the 12th class examination scoring 90% in optional and 99% in mathematics. Later he passed his B.Com- by attending evening classes at Loyola College in Madras.Source : "India's Highest Sports Awards and Those Who Won Them" by S.S.Gandhi, The Defence Review

KAPIL DEV - THE UNFORGETTABLE LEGEND


The only cricketer to receive three National Awards (Arjuna Award in 1979-80, Padma Shri ;2 and Padma Bhushan in 1991), Kapil Dev Nikhanj was an all-rounder of the highest class and a name to Nikon with. India never did have an opening bowler of real merit after partition till Kapil Dev came on the Hue in late 70s. A right-hand medium pacer of rare quality, a batssman who was arguably one of the biigest hitters of his time, a batssman, a leader and above all a odd human being, Kapil gave Indian cricket a new dimension and himself in the success it achieved.The World Cup title in 1983, Kapil Dev's contribution to Indian licket can never be measured in terms runs and wickets. It is his result-oriented approach that made him Immensely popular with the crowds and the media. His ability to change the course of a match either by batting or by bowling is legendary. He Born in Chandigarh on 6 January 1959, Kapil Dev was two months matuer of 17 when he took six for 39 against Punjab on his Ranji Trophy debut for Haryana at Rohtak in 1975. He punctuated his entry into big cricket with performance like 8 for 36.against J&K, 7 for 20 against Bengal and 8 for 38 against Services. His highest score of 193 against Punjab in 1979-80 is his career best knock- An alumnus of DAV High School and DAV College, Chandigarh, Kapil led Haryana in five of the 24 Ranji matches he played for the State. His 327 runs for Punjab University against Hissar Agriculture University in the Inter-University Tournament in 1977-78 is one of the tallest scores of the tourney. He captained the North Zone in the Duleep Trophy and created a record in the championship by winning all the three games in 1982-83. He also represented the Rest of India in the Irani Cup. His phenomenal success at the domestic level catapulted him into the Indian team on a tour of Pakistan in 1978. India lost the series but gained in the person of Kapil Dev who matured into a fine all-rounder, his most impressive performance coming in the third Test at Karachi when he made 59 for 48 deliveries including two sixes and eight fours. He never looked back after that tour. He was in top form when the West Indies came to India immediately following the Pakistan tour, hitting a century (126 not out) in the fifth Test at Delhi. That was followed by the tour of England in 1979 and Kapil emerged as the leading wicket-taker of the series- But throughout the tour he played only one good innings, 102 n 74 minutes against North amtonshire, a county he was to join two years later. By now he was reckoned as one of the four leading all-rounders in the game - the other three being Hadlee, Botham and Imran. Though his work as a strike bowler for India was cut out, he paid equal attention to his batting. One of his best innings was the century off 83 balls against England at Kanpur In 1982. The same year there was the explosive innings of 89 out of 117 added for the last four wickets in the second innings of the first Test against England at the Lord's. He hit Botham into the grand stand to reach 50 and hit two sixes off Phil Edmonds and was on course for the fastest Test century when he was out after batting 77 minutes. Source : "India's Highest Sports Awards and Those Who Won Them" by S.S.Gandhi, The Defence Review