Balbir Singh Sr's death: Amitabh Bachchan offers condolences, says 'what a champion'

Bollywood’s superstar, Amitabh Bachchan took to social media and expressed his condolences on the death of Padmashri hockey legend Balbir Singh on May 25 at the age of 96. The veteran sportsman succumbed to cardiac failure and the news of his demise was announced by his grandson through social media on Monday. Amitabh shared a smiling picture of the sportsperson and expressed grief over his demise.

Amitabh Bachchan mourns demise of hockey legend Balbir Singh

Amitabh Bachchan penned his heartfelt emotions about losing a champion on his Twitter handle while paying his tribute. The veteran actor recalled his childhood days wrote how tales of Balbir Singh Sr's victories and accomplishments were the talks of the town. He also referred to the Hockey legend as “India's Pride.” 

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Apart from Amitabh, Khiladi of Bollywood' Akshay Kumar also condoled the death of the sportsperson. The Housefull actor shared a picture of himself from one of his meetings with the late hockey player and mourned the demise of the legendary player. 
Balbir Singh was a three-time Olympic gold medal-winning hockey legend. He played a key role in India's Olympic victories in London (1948), as a vice-captain in Helsinki (1952) and as the captain in Melbourne (1956). In his illustrious playing career from 1947-1958, Balbir won 61 international caps and scored a whopping 246 goals. He was also the manager of the 1975 World Cup-winning team.

He had scored five goals in India's 6-1 victory over the Netherlands in the gold medal match of the 1952 Helsinki Games. He was conferred with the Padma Shri in 1957. That was the first time an athlete was conferred the prestigious civilian honour. Considered at par with Major Dhyan Chand in skills, Singh was among independent India's biggest hockey stars. Singh and Dhyan Chand never played together but are regarded as the jewels of Indian hockey, who inspired an entire generation of hockey players.

Balbir Singh Sr, one of India's greatest hockey players who won three Olympic gold medals in a stellar career, died at a hospital in Chandigarh on Monday after battling multiple health issues for over two weeks. The legendary center-forward was 96 and is survived by his daughter Sushbir and three sons Kanwalbir, Karanbir, and Gurbir. His sons are settled in Canada and he used to live here with his daughter and grandson Kabir.

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