GolfBoxingChessKabaddiBadmintonFormula 1Olympics
Powered BySG media
SBZ app
Yuvaraja Karunakaran

Calendar Iconviews : 798

5 Min Read

National Sports Day 2024: All about Major Dhyan Chand and the significance

National Sports Day 2024: All about Major Dhyan Chand and the significance

National Sports Day 2024: All about Major Dhyan Chand and the significance

National Sports Day is celebrated annually on August 29 in India, marking the birth anniversary of Major Dhyan Chand. India's sporting fraternity celebrated National Sports Day honouring the legacy of the Wizard of Hockey, Major Dhyan Chand. This day highlights the importance of sports and physical activities and honours Major Dhyan Chand's legacy in Indian hockey. Various events and initiatives are initiated to promote sports and fitness nationwide. Major Dhyan Chand who is known as the "Wizard of Hockey," was born on August 29, 1905. His outstanding hockey gameplay made him one of the best International hockey players. He was instrumental in India's three consecutive Olympic gold medal victories in 1928, 1932, and 1936. In this blog piece, we take a look at Major Dhyan Chand and the significance of National Sports Day.

National Sports Day 2024: All about Major Dhyan Chand and the significance

1. All you need to know about the National Sports Day history

National Sports Day is celebrated annually on August 29 in India and was first celebrated in 2012. This day highlights the importance of sports and physical activities and honours Major Dhyan Chand's legacy in Indian hockey. Major Dhyan Chand who is known as the "Wizard of Hockey," was born on August 29, 1905. Talking about his earlier days, Dhyan Chand had followed in the footsteps of his father and joined the British India Army. Major Dhyan Chand served for almost 34 years in the Indian Army.

The hockey wizard brought various laurels to the nation and was part of the Indian hockey team which struck gold in the Olympics of 1928, 1932, and 1936. He scored over 400 goals in his 22-year career. Dhyan Chand led the Indian men's hockey team, scoring three goals in the 1936 Berlin Olympic final, which they won 8-1 against Germany. Even after retiring, Dhyan Chand continued to contribute to Indian sports. He taught at numerous coaching camps in Rajasthan and served as the head coach at the National Institute of Sports in Patiala.

Recently, Hockey India named an 18-member Indian men's squad for the 2024 Asian Champions Trophy. This will be the first international tournament for India since their bronze medal-winning performance in the Paris Olympics 2024. This was the first time since the 1972 Munich Olympics that the Indian men's hockey team won a medal in consecutive Olympics. PR Sreejesh retired after the Paris Olympics, bringing an end to an illustrious career that lasted the better part of a decade and a half. The latest rise to 5th place in the FIH hockey world rankings is a result of the consecutive bronze medals won by Harmanpreet and Co. in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the 2024 Paris Olympics.

2. All you need to know about the significance of the National Sports Day

Every year on National Sports Day, the honourable president of India gives out all the sports-related awards like the Arjuna Award, Dronacharya Award and Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award to honour sportspersons and coaches who have made the nation proud in their respective sport. The Khelo India movement is one of the top sporting initiatives that Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched on this day inaugurated in 2018. Amidst the excitement, all eyes will be on the Indian para-athletes as they look to etch their names into the India Paralympics history.

India's javelin thrower Sumit Antil who was one of the flag-bearers for India in the Paris Paralympics 2024, was among India's five gold medallists in the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics and he will be looking to defend his javelin throw title in Paris. India kickstarts its 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris on August 29. The hopes are high as the largest-ever India Paralympics contingent will be looking to increase the medal count. The Indian Paralympics team is training harder than ever to put on their best-ever performance following the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics success.

3. Here's how India's sporting fraternity celebrated National Sports Day

SBZ app
SBZ app
SBZ app