Death of hockey legend Olympian captain Abdul Rashid widely condole in sports circles
our correspondent
PESHAWAR
Hockey legend and former Olympian Abdul Rashid Jr. has died in Bannu after a long illness. His funeral prayers were offered at Bannu Tarang Cemetery on Wednesday at 5.00 p.m and was later laid to rest in his native village graveyard.
He won the gold in 1968 Olympics, silver in 1972 Olympics and bronze in 1976 Olympics. He also represented the winning Pakistan team in the World Cup. Legendary Rashid Jr. will always be remembered.
His death has left a line of mourning all over Pakistan and especially sports circles have termed his death as a great tragedy. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has produced many of the best hockey players but Bannu has played a major role in this.
The identity of Bannu has become a game of hockey. Bannu has played the role of a nursery in hockey and the best players from this district emerged in 1848 in East India. Herbert Benjamin Edwards of the company brought to light the existence of Dhulipnagar in 1848 by Herbert Benjamin Edwardes. He was a lieutenant in the private army in the East India Company.
Later it was renamed Edwards in 1869. In 1903 it was renamed Bannu. It was a hockey attacking game. The soldiers took a keen interest in it and so did the youth here. He played hockey to the fullest and made a name for himself all over the world.
One of them was Rashid Jr. who later became an Olympian and played a key role in many important victories for Pakistan. He won Olympic medals and at the same time he made fans all over the world with his sport.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s district Bannu has produced many brilliant field hockey players for Pakistan. Hockey has been the district’s identity. In fact, Bannu has played the role of a nursery for Pakistan hockey, producing many greats of the game.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Mahmood Khan, Chief Secretary Dr. Kazim Niaz, Secretary Sports Abid Majeed, Additional Secretary Sports Junaid Khan, Director General Sports KP Asfandyar Khan Khattak, Director Female Games Miss Rashida Ghaznavi, Director Operation Syed Saqlain Shah, condoled the death of late Olympian Abdul Rashida Junior.
They, in separate condolence messages, expressed condolence on the death of Abdul Rashid Junior, prayed for the departed soul, and expressed sympathy with the bereaved family. The Chief Minister also lauded the services being rendered by late Rashid Junior and for this, he will be remembered forever.
The Chief Minister said that his services for the country would not be forgotten. He also labelled him as a real asset for the nation.
He said that the nation has suffered loss of a creative mind. Expressing his grief, he said that Abdul Rashid Junior was a talented person and provided unmatched services in field hockey. He said that Pakistan hockey family suffered a huge loss in the death of iconic former Pakistan captain, Adul Rasheed Junior who died on Wednesday in Islamabad after a brief illness.
