Review: Profiles of Indian Hockey Olympians

A timely look at the world of Indian hockey

Profiles of Indian Hockey Olympians

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K Arumugam

Field Hockey Publication

Rs 780 pp 226

What the Indian hockey team accomplished in February this year brought hope to a medal-starved nation. Overcoming the disappointment of not qualifying for the Beijing Olympics four years back, the team booked a London berth. With the Games just a few days away, former journalist K Arumugam’s book Profiles of Indian Hockey Olympians couldn’t have come at a better time.

If someone wants to know this India squad, the book meticulously introduces the players. Even when the writer shifts to the legends — Balbir Singh senior to Mohammad Shahid — he seldom misses any defining moments of the players.

The author, who is a walking encyclopedia of Indian hockey, has meticulously penned down exploits of each and every hockey legend since 1928. That detailed analysis being commendable, the book could have improved with careful editing.