Chennai: Welcoming the Khel Ratna award being rechristened after the legendary Dhyan Chand, Olympian Mohammed Riaz, who also captained the Indian hockey team, maintained that a separate award would have been more befitting.
Based in Chennai, Riaz had represented India twice in the Olympics and was honoured with the Arjuna award for his outstanding achievements. He had also coached the team at the London Olympics.
“Rajiv Gandhi was a great Prime Minister and Dhyan Chand was a legendary sportsperson who mesmerised everyone on the field and was offered German citizenship by Adolf Hitler to play for his country. An award to perpetuate the great memory and legacy of Dhyan Chand was welcome. However, it would have been even better had a separate award was instituted in his honour,” he told ETV Bharat.
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Another Olympian from Chennai, Muneer Sait, who was part of the Bronze medal winning team at Mexico in 1968, was a little circumspect. “It is a political decision,” was all that he would say and declined to say anything further.
Meanwhile, the Congress in Tamil Nadu had condemned the Centre's decision to rename the Khel Ratna award, describing it as an act of petty politics which smacked of vengeance.
Demanding Prime Minister Modi to reverse the decision, TNCC president KS Alagiri in a statement said, “If governments continue to engage in erasing the names of past leaders, it would set a bad precedent. Rajiv Gandhi was instrumental in giving a great push to sports in the country. Instead of rechristening, Modi should concentrate on arresting the economic downturn.”
