In this article, we have written an essay on Major Dhyan Chand for students and children in 1000 words. It includes his birth, early life, education, hockey career, and death information.
Major Dhyan Chand Essay in English (1000 words)
Major Dhyan Chand was one of the most famous and arguably the best players in the history of Indian hockey. He was renowned for his astonishing goal-scoring ability.
He showed his remarkable capabilities in the Olympics by winning a gold medal for India in the years 1928, 1932, and 1936.
His contribution was one of the reasons behind the domination of India in hockey in that era. The rumour spread that Adolf Hitler offered him the senior post in the German Army after defeating Germany in the Olympics.
But he rejected the proposal. He was known as “The Wizard” for his excellent ball-controlling skills. He played international matches from 1926 to 1949, scoring 570 goals.
He was awarded the Padma Bhushan, which is the third-highest civilian award. Every year on November 29, his birthday is celebrated as National Sports Day.
Early life
Major Dhyan Chand was born on August 29, 1905, in Allahabad. He belonged to a Rajput family. His younger brother was Roop Singh. He was also a hockey player. His father was an employee of the British government.
He used to play for the Army. Due to his father’s job, the whole family had to move from one place to another.
Education
It was challenging for him to continue his studies. Hence, he abandoned it six years later, after his admission. But after they settled, he studied at Victoria College in Gwalior.
He never had an inclination towards playing hockey. Although in his childhood, he used to play with his friends. But it was a casual play, not considering choosing it as a profession. He used to practice after his duty in the army.
As there were no floodlights during his time, he had to wait for the moonlight to improve the conditions for the practice. From there, his name has been derived from his friends.
Career in Hockey
Between the years of 1922 and 1926, Major Dhyan Chand was dedicated to playing hockey for the British Army. For his excellent skills, he was selected for the Indian Army. The team was on a tour of New Zealand. He joined them and performed excellently.
He was impressed with his performance. After returning to India, he was promoted to Lance Naik in 1927. After the successful reintroduction of field hockey to the Olympics, a new institute was founded to look after hockey and its progress. It is called the Indian Hockey Federation.
They planned to send the best team to the Amsterdam Olympics in 1928. To handpick the best from the lot, they arranged an inter-provisional tournament. Dhyan Chand was selected to play on behalf of the United Provinces. He made a strong case for being on the team through his hockey stick skills.
This tournament became famous, and was decided to hold it every two years. The team was finally announced, with Major Dhyan Chand as the center forward. At that time, the Indian Hockey Federation wasn’t financially stable, and all their requests for financial help fell on deaf ears.
Although they managed the fund and sent the team to London for further practice. There, they defeated England’s national team, which led them to withdraw their names from the Olympics. On April 24, 1928, the team reached Amsterdam to participate in the Olympic game.
They also beat the local Dutch teams by huge margins. Finally, they were enlisted in group A with Austria, Belgium, Denmark, and Switzerland. India thrashed the opponent convincingly in all three matches by a margin of at least five goals. Dhyan Chand scored a truckload of goals.
The final was against the home team, the Netherlands, on May 26th. Although Chand and some other players were ill, they defeated them by 3-0 and created history by winning the gold medal in the Olympics.
Major Chand was adjudged as the player of the tournament. After returning to India, he was considered a national hero. Thousands in the Bombay Harbour received the team in comparison to only three when they were leaving.
Now, the IHF is run by civil people. They again started the inter-provisional tournament to select the team for the next Olympics. At that time, Chand, who was Naik, had been refused by his platoons to participate in that tournament.
Although others had to prove themselves in the competition, Dhyan Chand was an automatic selection. Punjab won the inter-provisional tournament, and seven players were selected for the national team from Punjab. The team selected for the Olympics had a busy schedule in preparation.
They went to Ceylon and thrashed them in all the matches. They went to the United States and beat them convincingly. They sailed to participate in the Olympics of 1932. India played their first game against Japan and outplayed them by defeating them by a margin of 11-1.
They beat the host with a then-record margin of 24-1. Major Dhyan Chand and his brother scored a high percentage of goals while walking in the park. They were called ‘Hockey Twins.’ India successfully defended its gold medal in hockey at the Olympics.
The media in the United States called it the “typhoon from the east,” which dismantled everyone. After sailing from New York, they went to England for a hectic schedule. They played nine matches in a fortnight.
After that, India locked its horns with the international teams of Hungary, Czechoslovakia, the Netherlands, and Germany. They came back to Ceylon and India to play more tournaments. In this season, they won 34 out of 37 matches. He was named the “Magician of Indian Hockey.”
1936 Berlin Olympics
In the year 1933, his local team from Jhansi beat Calcutta in the final of the Beighton Cup, which Dhyan Chand considered the best match he had ever played in his life.
He led a very young team against the experienced team from Calcutta. In 1935, they defended the Beighton Cup successfully.
In the year of 1934, they were sent on the New Zealand tour. He has been elected as the captain of the team. They won all the marches, and Chand scored like a goal machine.
After returning to India, he joined the barracks. The IHF organised the Inter Provisional Tournament to prepare for the 1936 Olympics.
Again, Dhyan Chand was rejected by his platoon. But he, along with his brother, was selected without formalities.
The team left for the tournament, and after an uncomfortable journey in the third-class compartment, they reached Berlin. They lost their opening game against Germany but came back strongly against Hungary.
They won the rest of their group matches and marched to the final, again facing Germany. Although the team was nervous due to defeat in their last encounter against Germany, they started slowly.
But once they launched the all-out attack, they ripped the opponent apart and won their third consecutive Olympics gold.
East Africa Tournament and Final Phase
After returning from Berlin, he was confined to Army hockey only due to the announcement of the world war. He realised that this team needed new and young faces. The IHF arranged a tournament against East Africa. Dhyan Chand was elected as the captain.
They won all the matches. After 1948, Chand decided to phase himself out of serious hockey. He often represented the rest of India. His final game was against Bengal’s leading team, Rest of India.
In 1951, he was recognised at India’s National Stadium with the inaugural tournament named after him as the Dhyan Chand Tournament. Major Dhyan Chand Chand took retirement from the Indian Army in 1956.
Death
Chand passed away on December 3, 1979, at the AIIMS in New Delhi.
Featured Image- Hindi Wikimedia
