'Olympic medal in Tokyo will always remain close to my heart': Manpreet Singh

He reached the career milestone when India took on Spain in their first match of the FIH Pro League 2023-24 at the Kalinga Hockey Stadium in Bhubaneswar on February 10.

Manpreet Singh, the prolific midfielder from Mithapur, Punjab, began playing hockey with an intent to support his family and never imagined that he would become a crucial cog in the Indian men’s hockey team, let alone achieve 350 appearances for India.

He reached the career milestone when India took on Spain in their first match in the FIH Pro League 2023-24 at the Kalinga Hockey Stadium in Bhubaneswar on February 10.

As Manpreet achieved a personal feat, he picked the top five moments of his career, and undoubtedly, at the top of the pile was the Olympic bronze medal. At the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, India beat Germany 5-4 to win the bronze medal.

“It was an unbelievable feeling to win the Bronze medal at the Olympics; that had always been my dream since I started playing for the national team. I felt immensely proud when we finally clinched an Olympic medal in hockey after 41 years. It is a significant achievement and will always remain close to my heart,” Manpreet recalled.

His second most memorable moment was winning the gold medal in the 17th Asian Games in 2014 held in Korea. India claimed victory after beating Pakistan 4-2 in shootouts, as regulation time ended with both teams tied at 1-1.

“That was my first major gold medal with the Indian team, and winning it as a junior player ignited the fire in my belly. The feeling of winning the gold medal is incomparable, and I have been chasing it ever since,” he added.

Manpreet’s third most memorable moment was winning the silver medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland. India missed out on the gold medal as they lost 0-4 to Australia in the final.

“The previous major event was the Commonwealth Games 2014, where we won the silver medal. I feel that these initial successful events boosted my confidence and propelled me further in my career. Winning two consecutive medals, especially as a junior in the team, was a really big thing for me at that moment,” the 31-year-old said.

Next on the list is the 2017 Asia Cup held in Bangladesh where India beat Malaysia 2-1 in the final to claim the gold medal.

“This tournament is also close to my heart because it was the first medal the team won with me as the Captain. It was a testament to all the work I had put in over the years. Sharing my experience with the youngsters and leading the team to victory instilled a deep sense of achievement and satisfaction in me,” he explained.

Most valuable goal

Manpreet has scored 44 goals in his career so far, but he values his goal against Japan in the final of the Asian Games in Hangzhou last year the most. After Manpreet’s goal, India went on to win 5-1 over Japan, earning a direct qualification for the Paris Olympics.

“I remember, the Japanese keeper swatted away a shot on goal and the ball fell to me at the edge of the shooting circle, I took a touch to get it out of my feet and let loose a reverse tomahawk to beat the keeper. Before the Asian Games, I felt I wasn’t having the impact I knew I could but my performances kept improving and to score like that, in the Final, put my mind at ease,” Manpreet signed off.