Udham
Singh Kullar represented India at the 1952 Helsinki; 1956 Melbourne;
1960 Rome and the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games, winning three Gold
Medals and one Silver Medal.
Udham,
popularly known as ‘Udhi’, made his mark at a very
early age and won many a laurel before joining D.A.V. College,
Jullundur.
Udham
captained the College in 1947 and at the age of 19, he won the
Punjab State colours, which he retained for 17 years without
a break till 1965.
Injury
to a finger just before the departure of the Indian team for
the London Olympics in 1948 robbed him of a place in the team.
He
toured Afghanistan with the Indian Hockey Federation team in
1949.
He
toured Poland in 1953 with the Indian Hockey Federation team.
Udham
(left) with Dhyan Chand
He
captained Punjab in 1954, and led the Indian Hockey Federation
team to the Youth Festival in Warsaw in 1955.
He
was at his best in the 1958 Asian Games in Tokyo but unfortunately
the Gold Medal went to Pakistan on the basis of superior goal
difference.
In
1959, he captained the Indian team which toured East Africa.
He scored 47 goals on that tour.
Udham
(centre) in Kenya 1959
He
was member of the team that won the Festival matches in Munich
in 1959 and toured New Zealand in 1961 and Kenya in 1964.
He
again attracted the selectors’ attention in 1963 and travelled
for the International Hockey Tournament in Lyons, France.
Udham
was a superbly fit hockey player with excellent ball control
and excellent distribution skills.
Udham
leading India's attack in Kenya
He
was one of the all time great superstars of Indian and world
hockey.
Udham
together with Balbir, Dharam, Tarlochan and Bakhshish joined
Punjab Police after partition of the country.
Udham
Singh figured in the Guinness Book of Records for participating
in four consecutive Olympic Games (1952-1964).
Udham
Singh at Melbourne Olympics
After
retiring from playing international hockey, Udham took to coaching
the State and Punjab Police squads.
He
played a leading role in shaping the brilliant careers of Ajitpal
Singh, Harmik Singh, Surjit Singh and a host of other players.
Udham
coached the Indian team that won Silver at the 1967 Pre Olympics
in London and 1970 Asian Games in Bangkok.
Harbinder,
Mohinder Lal & Udham
Udham
joined Punjab Police in 1949 and served with them until 1966,
when he transferred Border Security Force. Udham became an IPS
officer in 1983, and retired in 1988.
After
retirement from Border Security Force, he devoted himself to
training youngsters in Sansarpur.
Udham
Singh was awarded the Indian National Award ‘Arjuna Puraskar’
in 1965.
