Aamir Khan mourns the death of hockey star Balbir Singh Sr

Bollywood actor Aamir Khan on Wednesday took to his Instagram handle to mourn the loss of 96-year-old three-time Olympic gold-medallist, Balbir Singh, the hockey legend who died on Monday in Mohali. The actor shared a picture of Singh and wrote that the country has lost one of her gems.

Khan wrote, "Very saddened to read about the demise of one of our legends Shri Balbir Singh. It was my privilege and good fortune to ask his blessings. My heartfelt condolences to Balbirji's family and friends. The country has lost one of her gems. a." [sic]

Hockey icon Balbir Singh Senior, who died at 96 after battling multiple health issues, was on Monday cremated Chandigarh with full state honours, with Punjab Sports Minister Rana Gurmeet Singh Sodhi declaring that the Mohali stadium will be named after the legendary player. 

The legendary centre-forward is survived by his daughter Sushbir and three sons -- Kanwalbir, Karanbir, and Gurbir.

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. 

Saddened to hear about the demise of hockey legend #BalbirSingh ji. Have had the good fortune of meeting him in the past, such an amazing personality! My heartfelt condolences to his family 🙏🏻 pic.twitter.com/knjOq7VEav

— Akshay Kumar (@akshaykumar)

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.

Give due recognition to Balbir Singh Sr: Former hockey players to govt 

(with PTI inputs)