Milkha Singh

Milkha Singh (1929 - 2021)

Milkha Singh was born on 20 November 1929 and passed away on 18 June 2021. He was born in a Sikh family. His birthplace was Govindpura, a village 10 km (6.25 mi) from Muzaffargarh city in Punjab Province, British India now Muzaffargarh District, Pakistan. He was one of 15 siblings, eight of whom died before the Partition of india. He was orphaned during the Partition when his parents, a brother and two sisters were killed by Muslim mobs in the violence that ensued. He witnessed these killings.

Escaping the troubles in Punjab, where killings of Hindus and Sikhs were continuing, by moving to Delhi, India, in 1947, Singh lived for a short time with the family of his married sisterand was briefly imprisoned at Tihar jail for travelling on a train without a ticket. His sister, Ishvar, sold some jewellery to obtain his release. He spent some time at a refugee camp in Purana Qila and at a resettlement colony in Shahdara, both in Delhi.

Honorary Captain Milkha Singh 20 November 1929 – 18 June 2021, also known as The Flying Sikh, was an Indian former track and field sprinter who was introduced to the sport while serving in the Indian Army. He is the only athlete to win Gold in the 400m at the Asian as well the Commonwealth Games. He also won gold medals in the 1958 and 1962 Asian Games. He represented India in the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome and the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. He was awarded the Padma Shri, India's fourth-highest civilian honour, in recognition of his sporting achievements.

The race for which Singh was best remembered is his fourth-place finish in the 400 meters final at the 1960 Olympic Games, which he had entered as one of the favorites. Various records were broken in the race, which required a photo-finish and saw American Otis Davis being declared the winner by one-hundredth of a second over German Carl Kaufmann. Singh's fourth-place time of 45.73 seconds was the Indian national record for almost 40 years.

From beginnings that saw him orphaned and displaced during the Partition of India, Singh has become a sporting icon in his country. In 2008, journalist Rohit Brijnath described Singh as "the finest athlete India has ever produced".

Milkha Singh died on 18 June 2021 due to COVID-19 complications at the age of 91. Milkha Singh admitted to the Covid ward in the Nehru Hospital Extension at PGIMER on June 3 due to dipping oxygen levels. Only five days earlier, Milkha Singh’s wife had also passed away due to coronavirus.