Indian hockey team midfielder Manpreet Singh recalls his top-5 moments after making 350 appearances
Manpreet Singh, the prolific midfielder from Mithapur, Punjab, began playing hockey as a means 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 milestone when India took on Spain in their first match of the FIH Hockey Pro League 2023/24 at the Kalinga Hockey Stadium in Bhubaneswar on February 10, 2024.
Manpreet ranked his top 5 most memorable moments in his career so far, and undoubtedly, at the top of the pile was winning the bronze medal at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, where India beat Germany 5-4.”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 Men’s Hockey Team, and winning it as a junior player ignited the fire in my belly. The feeling of winning the Gold is incomparable, and I have been chasing it ever since,” he commented, according to a release.
Manpreet’s third most memorable moment was winning the silver medal at the XX Commonwealth Games 2014 held in Glasgow, Scotland. India missed out on the Gold medal as they lost 0-4 to Australia in the final.
