The great Shankar Laxman is a sad story. To think of a sportsman who had achieved such success as an athlete but is now lost in pages of history and died in poverty, is just plain sad. But, he holds his place among the best Indian athletes.?
Not many people would would have an idea about him, but an avid hockey would know the greatness of the man who was a wall in front of the goal for the Indian team in the 1950s and 1960s. The best goalkeeper India has ever produced, Laxman was a regular fixture in the team that dominated the circuit during his reign.?
Laxman was a goalkeeper of the Indian hockey team and stood like a rock in the 1956 Olympics when the team had won gold, in the 1960 Olympics when the team had won silver and again in 1964 Olympics when the team had won gold.??
Shankar Laxman was the first goalkeeper ever to have become captain of an international hockey team and under his leadership, the Indian hockey team had won 1966 Asian Games. Laxman has been a recipient of the Arjuna award and the Padmasri from the Indian government.? ?
After he quit the game, Shankar was part of the Indian Army and retired in 1979 as an honorary Captain.?
But sadly, life would take a sad turn in the years to come. He was constantly in need and poverty marked his days till the last. He was also diagnosed with gangrene but sadly the hockey authorities did not pay any attention to his pleas for help. Finally he died in 2006 and was cremated with full military honours.??
A man who won so much for his country and? served with great distinction had to spend the rest of his life in extreme poverty.?Sadly, his name is almost forgotten in our hockey history.?
But the legacy he created is one that should be cherished. After all, he did not play for fame or recognition but a genuine love for the sport. He was good at it and India reaped the benefits.