With a medal at Tokyo Olympics: Re-live the 'Glory Days' of Indian men's hockey

Indian men's hockey team has ended their 41-year wait to win a medal in the Olympics after they defeated Germany and won a bronze medal. The Men in Blue held their nerve to win a thrilling match and beat the Germans 5-4 at the Tokyo Olympics 2020 on Thursday. 

Take a look at the 'Glory Days' of Indian hockey:  

India stunned the world on its hockey debut in the Olympics. The Men in Blue, who were a colony of the British Empire back then, won their first-ever gold medal in the Amsterdam Olympics, 1928. 

This marked the beginning of something special. 

India hockey squad for Amsterdam 1928 Olympics: Jaipal Singh (captain), Broome Eric Pinninger (vice-captain), Syed M Yusuf, Richard J Allen, Michael E Roeque, Leslie C Hammond, Rex A Norris, William John Goodsir-Cullen, Kehar Singh Gill, Maurice A Gateley, Shaukat Ali, George E Marthins, Dhyan Chand, Feroze Khan and Frederick S Seaman

However, India went on to win 8 Gold medals in Hockey. Their last Olympics gold in Hockey came in 1980.

Even after decades, Dhyan Chand remains the most significant name in Indian Hockey. He emerged as an unstoppable force in world hockey during the 1928 Olympics. 

He helped India win the 1928, 1932 and 1936 Olympics (hattrick of gold medals).

Another name that emerged in Indian hockey was Balbir Singh. The Indian men’s hockey team had won Olympic gold medals in 1948, 1952 and 1956 under Singh's captaincy.

India were unbeaten in 30 consecutive matches, and scored 197 goals, giving away only eight.

They won six consecutive titles between 1928 and 1956. However their 30-match unbeaten streak was ended by Pakistan during the 1960 Rome Olympics final.

Indian men's team was one of the most dominant teams in Hockey, they not only had back-to-back gold medals to prove it they also won the World Cup in 1975. 

Indian men's hockey had to settle for bronze in 1968 and 1972. And in 1978 Olympics, they finished on their then-lowest finish (seventh). 

The Indian men's hockey returned to their former glory and won their last Olympics gold in 1980. A young Indian team, with very few seniors was heading into the Moscow Olympics. The skipper of the 1980 Indian men's hockey team, Vasudevan Baskaran, recalled the times when field Marshall Sam Manekshaw spoke to the squad motivating them to win.  

“This bunch was lucky to have been spoken to by field marshal Sam Manekshaw,” captain Vasudevan Baskaran had said on the Sony Sports show Medal of Glory.

“He visited us twice and talked about the target at the Olympics. That’s how it began.”