New Delhi: India observes National Sports Day on August 29 every year as a tribute to hockey legend Major Dhyan Chand on his birth anniversary. The day this year marks the 117th birth anniversary of the ‘magician of hockey’.

On the occasion, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to the late hockey player in a tweet on Monday which read, “Greetings on National Sports Day and tributes to Major Dhyan Chand Ji on his birth anniversary. The recent years have been great for sports. May this trend continue. May sports keep gaining popularity across India”.

Greetings on National Sports Day and tributes to Major Dhyan Chand Ji on his birth anniversary.

The recent years have been great for sports. May this trend continue. May sports keep gaining popularity across India. pic.twitter.com/g04aqModJT

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 29, 2022

Here, we have brought all that you need to know about Major Dhyan Chand, from his hockey career to major achievements. Read on

Early Days

Major Dhyan Chand was born in a middle-class family in the Prayagraj district of Uttar Pradesh. After completing basic education in his hometown, the latter joined the Army as a soldier in the year 1922.

During his service, he was truely inspired with his senior collegue Subedar Major Tiwari and started playing hockey under his supervision.

Sports Career

He led India to three Olympic gold medals in 1928, 1932 and 1936. He was instrumental in India’s 8–1 victory over Germany and became the top scorer in the 1936 Berlin Olympic Finals.

During his career from 1926 to 1948, Major Dhyan Chand scored over 1,000 goals, including more than 400 international goals in various leagues.

Owing to his outstanding performance in hockey, he was appointed as ‘Lance Nayak’ in 1927 and was promoted as a lieutenant in the later years. Finally, he retired from his military service as a Major.

In 1956, Major Dhyan Chand was awarded with country’s third highest civilian honor Padma Bhushan by the Government of India.