Chandigarh’s first hockey Olympian Sukhbir Singh Gill battles for life

Deepankar Sharda

Chandigarh, January 25

One of the finest midfielders in India during the late 90’s, 48-year-old Sukhbir Singh Gill is now battling for his life.

Chandigarh’s first hockey Olympian’s differently abled mother, wife and children are looking after Gill, who is now semicomatose. A brain tumour, detected in December 2006, has now turned aggressive. Despite undergoing a number of operations, including Gamma Knife radiosurgeries, since 2021, the disease has rendered Gill completely bedridden.

Gill, who is beset by official and public apathy, stands to lose the ones who have had his back through thick and thin, especially his 19-year-old daughter. Once known for making the ball dance with a hockey stick in his deft hands, Gill is no longer able to hold a feather now.

Gill, who first experienced some trouble breathing in 2006, was diagnosed with a brain tumour through a series of CT scans and an MRI test. He first underwent an operation for the same on December 19 the same year. It was followed by a four-year-long uphill battle as he struggled to make his comeback in hockey. After recuperating, he tried playing in the 2007 edition of the Premier Hockey League. His mother, Daljeet Kaur, claimed despite being an Olympian, his son never sought benefits given to sportspersons by the Administration.

Gill honed his skills at Shivalik Public School, Sector 41, and later moved to DAV College, Sector 10. He represented Panjab University in the All-India Inter-University Hockey Championships before cementing his place on the Indian team. After hanging his boots, Gill ran an academy at Shivalik Public School, Mohali, and organised hockey championships every year for budding and professional players alike.

Members of Gill’s family have been running from pillar to post to get some support (non-financial) from the UT Administration, but to no avail. Gill, who has his medical expenses covered by BPCL, is yet to receive a word of comfort from the local authorities. His wife, Gurpreet, rued, “We had earlier met the Chandigarh Director Sports and urged the Administration to provide us some assistance in the form of a helper or a physiotherapist. We made that request at a time when he (Gill) was in dire need of such facilities. However, we had to make arrangements on our own. His situation is worsening with each passing day, and there’s not even a single word from the Administration.”