Indian hockey@100: A chaotic beginning to a glorious innings

Indian hockey celebrates its 100th year on Friday with pride and 13 Olympic medals (8 gold, 1 silver, 4 bronze) in its kitty but the start of the glorious journey is interesting and intriguing.

- K Arumugam

India's bid for their first Olympic gold in Amsterdam 1928 ran into early trouble. The organisation that was formed to consolidate Indian hockey, the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF), was almost rendered dysfunctional for the next two years after it was created in 1925.

When it ultimately woke up to organise the first-ever Inter-Provincial event, a prototype of the National Championship, to select the first-ever All-India representative team for Amsterdam, they got a shock from Gwalior. A rival faction — yes, it existed a century ago too — announced an All-India team! The idea was to send it to England and if successful, stake claim for the Amsterdam Games.