Davinder Singh Garcha passes away at 73

Former international hockey player Davinder Singh Garcha, who won the gold in the 1980 Moscow Olympics, passed away on Saturday in his Jalandhar home. He was 73 years old.


“After complaining of chest pains, he was admitted to a private hospital on Jan 2, had a minor operation and came back home on Jan 6. However, today morning he sadly passed away at his home,” said a family friend on Saturday. His cremation will be held on Jan 14.



Garcha, who was born on Dec 7, 1952, in Amritsar to dairy farmer parents, made his international debut at the 1979 Moscow pre-Olympic tournament. At the 1980 Olympics, Garcha played six matches and scored eight goals. In the tournament, India beat Spain in the final 4-3 to win the gold for a record eighth time.

Before that, he was also the top scorer for India at the Champions Trophy held in Karachi. In the tournament, India finished fifth while Pakistan were crowned champions. As for West Germany and Australia, they finished second and third respectively.

Overall, he played more than 30 international matches over three tournaments, scoring 19 goals.

Although he didn’t play for too long, he got the Dhyan Chand award in 2021. Besides being a well acclaimed hockey player, he was also an IPS officer and served as DIG of Punjab Police. He was also associated with hockey promotion and served as the president of the Olympian Surjit Hockey Society, which organizes an annual hockey tournament.