Milkha Singh
Encyclopedia
Milkha Singh (born 8 October 1935) is an India
n athlete, who represented India
in the 1960 Summer Olympics
in Rome
and the 1964 Summer Olympics
in Tokyo
. He is nickname
d The Flying Sikh.
He is considered as one of the greatest athletes ever produced by India and is also the father of the professional golfer Jeev Milkha Singh
.
The Partition massacres of 1947 took the lives of his parents and Singh was rejected by the army thrice. He subsequently enrolled in the army's electrical mechanical engineering branch in 1952 when his brother Malkhan Singh put in a word for him, and experienced his first sport outing at its athletics meet a fortnight later.Determined to be the best and realizing his talent as a sprinter, the year took to training five hours every day under the watchful eyes of coach Havildar Gurdev Singh.
, his first Olympic event. Although he couldn’t fare quite well at the event being less experienced at the time, he learnt a lot from the competition to prepare himself well for the future meets. After winning Gold in Cardiff, Wales, UK in the 1958 Commonwealth games and accepting the gold with a full head of hair, due to his Sikh faith, he became known throughout the world of Athletics.
Around the same time, he was invited to run in Pakistan
but was unsure due to the events of his childhood. He was persuaded as people were afraid of the political ramifications if he refused on these grounds. He decided to run.
Throughout various races Milkha Singh destroyed his opposition, easily winning, using his parents as an inspiration. This is where he became known as the Flying Sikh.
in Tokyo
, clocking 21.6 seconds and 47 seconds respectively. At the 1958 Cardiff Commonwealth Games
, he improved his 400m timing to 46.16 seconds, and grabbed a Gold Medal again. He thus became independent India's first gold medallist at the Commonwealth Games
.
400 m hurdles bronze by 1/100th of a second)
and Sonam Kapoor
in lead roles.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n athlete, who represented India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
in the 1960 Summer Olympics
1960 Summer Olympics
The 1960 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held from August 25 to September 11, 1960 in Rome, Italy...
in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
and the 1964 Summer Olympics
1964 Summer Olympics
The 1964 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Tokyo, Japan in 1964. Tokyo had been awarded with the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subsequently passed to Helsinki because of Japan's...
in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
. He is nickname
Nickname
A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
d The Flying Sikh.
He is considered as one of the greatest athletes ever produced by India and is also the father of the professional golfer Jeev Milkha Singh
Jeev Milkha Singh
Jeev Milkha Singh is the first Indian professional golfer to become a member of the European Tour. He is the highest ranked Indian golfer in the world and first broke into the top 100 in October 2006.-Early life:...
.
Early Life
He was born on the 8th of October 1935 at Lyallpur (now in Pakistan) in a Sikh Rajput Rathore Family. He had a very difficult childhood as he saw his parents and relatives being killed in front of his own eyes during the Indo-Pak partition Massacre. A 12 year old Milkha escaped for his life and hiding himself behind the corpses in the train to India, managed to get a new lease of life, though left all alone in the world by now.The Partition massacres of 1947 took the lives of his parents and Singh was rejected by the army thrice. He subsequently enrolled in the army's electrical mechanical engineering branch in 1952 when his brother Malkhan Singh put in a word for him, and experienced his first sport outing at its athletics meet a fortnight later.Determined to be the best and realizing his talent as a sprinter, the year took to training five hours every day under the watchful eyes of coach Havildar Gurdev Singh.
International career
Milkha Singh represented India in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics1956 Summer Olympics
The 1956 Melbourne Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in Melbourne, Australia, in 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, which could not be held in Australia due to quarantine regulations...
, his first Olympic event. Although he couldn’t fare quite well at the event being less experienced at the time, he learnt a lot from the competition to prepare himself well for the future meets. After winning Gold in Cardiff, Wales, UK in the 1958 Commonwealth games and accepting the gold with a full head of hair, due to his Sikh faith, he became known throughout the world of Athletics.
Around the same time, he was invited to run in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
but was unsure due to the events of his childhood. He was persuaded as people were afraid of the political ramifications if he refused on these grounds. He decided to run.
Throughout various races Milkha Singh destroyed his opposition, easily winning, using his parents as an inspiration. This is where he became known as the Flying Sikh.
The Golden Period
Probably the best period during Milkha’s career as an Athlete arrived between the year 1958 and 1960. He won Gold Medals in both 200m and 400m events at the 1958 Asian Games1958 Asian Games
The 3rd Asian Games were held from May 24 to June 1, 1958 in Tokyo, Japan. A total number of 1,820 athletes, coming from 16 countries, competed in thirteen events at this Asiad. Debuting sports were field hockey, table tennis, tennis, and volleyball. Tokyo would go on to host the 1964 Summer...
in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, clocking 21.6 seconds and 47 seconds respectively. At the 1958 Cardiff Commonwealth Games
1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games
The 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Cardiff, capital of Wales from 18–26 July 1958.Thirty-five nations sent a total of 1,130 athletes and 228 officials to the Cardiff Games and 23 countries and dependencies won medals, including, for the first time, Singapore, Ghana, Kenya...
, he improved his 400m timing to 46.16 seconds, and grabbed a Gold Medal again. He thus became independent India's first gold medallist at the Commonwealth Games
Commonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games is an international, multi-sport event involving athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930 and takes place every four years....
.
The Olympic Legend
The most important occasion in Milkha’s career arrived in the form of Rome Olympic Games 1960. In the first heat of 400m race at the Rome Olympic Games, he covered the race at 47.6 seconds and finished at 2nd position. In the second heat he further improved his timing and grabbed 2nd position again with a timing of 46.5 seconds. Karl Kaufman of Germany had outclassed him this time. In the Semi Final heat he still finished at 2nd place, although this time he further improved the timing with 45.9, beaten by only Ottis Davis of USA. In the final round of the coveted race, Milkha went off like an arrow and left all other competitors behind until the distance of 250m. He then miscalculated his own speed and the other opponents had lagged him behind enough for him to catch them again. The competition was so tough that Ottis Davis and Karl Kaufman clocked 44.9 seconds, while Malcolm Spence of South Africa covered the race in 45.5 seconds. Milkha, who was initially leading the race, finished just 0.1 seconds later by Spence, clocking 45.6 seconds. The difference was so minute that the announcement was initially held up and further declared after a photo-finish. Thus Milkha, who was a favorite for the Gold, lost a Bronze by a whisker, the closest an Indian athlete could get to an Olympic Medal in Athletics till now. (This was later bettered by P.T. Usha, who lost the 1984 Olympics1984 Summer Olympics
The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984...
400 m hurdles bronze by 1/100th of a second)
Life after retirement
Post retirement, Milkha Singh holds the appointment of Director of Sports in Punjab. Singh's life story will also be the basis of a forthcoming film named Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (translation: Run Milkha Run) being directed by Rakeysh Mehra and starring Farhan AkhtarFarhan Akhtar
Farhan Akhtar is an Indian filmmaker, script writer, actor, playback singer, lyricist, film producer in Hindi cinema and a television host.His directorial debut Dil Chahta Hai won a National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi...
and Sonam Kapoor
Sonam Kapoor
Sonam Kapoor is an Indian film actress who appears in Bollywood films. Kapoor made her acting debut in the unsuccessful film Saawariya opposite newcomer Ranbir Kapoor, which earned her a nomination for Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut. She earned her first commercial success in I Hate Luv...
in lead roles.
Awards and achievements
- Gold medal - 1958 Asian GamesAsian GamesThe Asian Games, officially known as Asiad, is a multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until the 1978 Games. Since the 1982 Games they have been organised by the...
in the 200 m and 400 m. - Gold medal - 1962 Asian GamesAsian GamesThe Asian Games, officially known as Asiad, is a multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until the 1978 Games. Since the 1982 Games they have been organised by the...
. - 1959, awarded the Padma ShriPadma ShriPadma Shri is the fourth highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan...