For decades, even before India earned Independence, Indian hockey was considered the very definition of sporting excellence on the global stage.
With a proud haul of 13 Olympic medals, 8 Gold, 1 Silver, and 4 Bronze, India established itself as the sport’s ultimate powerhouse. One person who has played a crucial role in helping shape India’s story has been the inimitable Zafar Iqbal, a Gold Medallist from the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games. It is also the last time India won a Gold medal at the Summer Olympics.
Reflecting on a glorious 100 years of Indian hockey, Zafar Iqbal said, “I would say it is a big achievement by Indian Hockey during the last 100 years. If you consider what hockey has done
for the country during the last 100 years, we have 8 gold medals in the Olympic Games, and medals at the World Cup too. They have done a great job for the country. They have brought laurels for the country, and no other team in the world has done the same thing in the past 100 years, even if you consider Australia, Germany, Holland, and other great hockey playing nations.”
A very important cog in the wheel during his playing days, Zafar not only won a Gold Medal in the 1980 Olympics in Moscow, he has also won two Silver medals at the Asian Games in 1978
and 1982, and a Bronze medal at the Champions Trophy in 1982.
Looking back at what was a successful era in the sport, he said, “Indian hockey has achieved a lot more after India won independence in 1947. We have won 5 gold medals since 1947.”
It was in 1976 that hockey turned to astroturf at the Olympic Games. And India was more used to playing on grass. However, in 1980, India overcame all the challenges of playing on a new surface and clinched the coveted Gold in Moscow.
Speaking about the campaign, Zafar fondly remembers how they went about business.
“We never had much experience of playing on astro turfs because there weren’t any in India at that time.
We played Spain in the final in 1980, and it was a very tough match. Spain were one of the top teams at the time, and we had to defend very well in the final phases of the match to clinch the win. It was all down to our skills and abilities that we were able to defeat Spain,” Zafar said.
“We were so happy that tears were going down, there was a feeling of enjoyment when we got on the podium. We were enjoying the game and everybody was supporting us, even though there were hardly any spectators from India. But the entire embassy officials were there,” he added.
Speaking about the current generation of players in Indian hockey, Zafar said, “We have to show to the world that we have a lot of players who can become champions in the future. We won the 2016 Junior Men’s Hockey World Cup, and now I hope we play well and finish on the podium in the 2025 Junior Men’s Hockey World Cup.”
He also added, “Hockey India is a well-organized unit, and they are doing the job professionally and I am sure they can grow hockey in our country.”
