Milkha Singh, known as the “Flying Sikh”, passed away last night. Milkha Singh, 91, was admitted to hospital due to the corona where his report was negative on Thursday, but yesterday his condition turned critical and he died. Milkha Singh was the most successful athlete in the history of sport in India. From the country’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to the then President of Pakistan, Marshal Ayub Khan, everyone was a fan of Milkha’s skills.
Milkha Singh was born on November 20, 1929 in Govindpura (now part of Pakistan) into a Sikh family. His childhood went through a very difficult period. Milkha Singh lost her parents and many siblings in the riots that followed the partition of India. He had a passion for running since childhood. He used to run 10 kilometers from his home to school and from school to home.
I got the title ‘Flying Sikh’ like that
The story of Milkha Singh obtaining the title of “Flying Sikh” is very interesting and her relationship is linked to Pakistan. Milkha Singh was deeply sorry to have missed a medal at the Olympic Games in Rome in 1960. In the same year, he received an invitation to participate in the international athlete competition held in Pakistan. Milkha had the pain of the partition for a long time and did not want to go to Pakistan because of the memories attached to it. However, later, on the persuasion of the then Prime Minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, he decided to go to Pakistan.
The name of Abdul Khaliq was very famous in athletics in Pakistan at that time. He was considered the fastest runner there. Here, Milkha Singh was in competition with him. In this race with Abdul Khaliq the situation was against Milkha and the whole stadium lifted the spirit of its hero but Khalik could not stand in front of Milkha’s speed. After the race, then President of Pakistan Field Marshal Ayub Khan named Milkha Singh as the “Flying Sikh” and said: “Today you did not run away. That is why we give you the title of Flying Sikh. Since then he has become famous all over the world under this name. For his incomparable contribution to sport, the Indian government has also awarded him the Padma Shri, India’s fourth highest honor.
Joined the army in 1951
After four attempts, Milkha Singh joined the army in 1951. He came sixth in the cross-country race organized during recruiting, so the army selected him for special training in the sport. During this time he discovered his running talent at the EME Center in Secunderabad and it was from there that his career began. Milkha was so obsessed with becoming an athlete that he used to run with a moving train to practice. During this, several times his blood also flowed and he couldn’t even breathe, but he still used to practice continuously day and night.
He first competed in the 200m and 400m races at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. His first experience at the international level as an athlete may not have been a good one, but this tour proved to be very beneficial for him afterwards. During this time, his meeting with world champion athlete Charles Jenkins has been a great source of inspiration for him for the future.
First Indian to win gold for India at Commonwealth Games
Milkha Singh set records at the National Games held in Cuttack in 1958 in the 200m and 400m events. After that, the same year at the Asian Games held in Tokyo, he also won gold medals in the 200-meter and 400-meter races. In 1958, at the Commonwealth Games held in Cardiff, England, Milkha once again proved her talent and won the gold medal in the 400 meters. At that time, he was the first Indian to win a gold medal for India at the Commonwealth Games in independent India.
After the success of the 1958 Asian Games, Milkha Singh obtained the post of junior commission in the military. At the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome, he brilliantly completed the 400-meter race, but in the dying moments he fell behind German athlete Karl Kaufmann by a hundredth of a second and narrowly missed the bronze medal. During it, he also broke the old Olympic record in this race and set a national record by completing the 400 meters in 45.73 seconds. His 400-meter record was broken after 40 years.
Milkha Singh remained India’s greatest Olympian for decades with her outstanding performances at the 1960 Rome Olympics and the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. At the Asian Games in Jakarta in 1962, Milkha Singh also won gold in the 400-meter and four times in 400-meter relay races.
