An uneasy tournament
Winning the gold medal at the 1962 Asian Games is a crowning glory moment for the Indian football team. This hard-fought victory remains the team’s last major international triumph. And in that moment of glory, they had some unlikely cheerleaders.
Indian football team’s journey at the 1962 Games was rocky from the start. Citing recent poor results, the cash-strapped government refused to allow the team to participate. Hectic efforts by the Federation and coach SA Rahim resolved the impasse at the last minute.
Once in Jakarta, the team was faced with an unforeseen situation. Under pressure from China and the Gulf countries, Taiwan and Israeli teams were denied visas by the Indonesian government despite being full IOC (International Olympic Committee) members.
Guru Dutt Sondhi, India’s representative at the Asian Games Federation, strongly objected to this and lambasted the Indonesian government in press interviews. All hell would break loose.
India: a force to be reckoned with
Anti-Indian sentiments swept across Indonesia. There were attacks on the Indian Embassy and Sondhi had to leave Jakarta in haste. The Indian delegation was routinely jeered at and abused.
The Indian football team, despite losing the opener against South Korea, embarked on a dream run - reaching the final. At every game, the team was faced with hostile crowds, but they took it in their stride. However, with every success, the crowd’s ire spiked.
A friendly presence
In the final, against South Korea, the packed stands booed when the Indian national anthem played. That’s when the team received some surprising but much-needed boost. The Pakistani hockey team, who had incidentally defeated India to win the gold, came for the match and cheered wholeheartedly for their neighbors.
The Indian team played inspired football to defeat South Korea 2-1 and claimed the coveted gold medal! That afternoon in Jakarta, Indian football won. But more importantly, humanity won as brotherly love triumphed over the politics of hate.
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