When Flying Sikh Milkha Singh turned the primary Indian athlete to win a gold medal on the then British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Cardiff in 1958, Singh had surpassed South African Malcolm Spence to create historical past. While Singh would practice beneath coaches like Havildar Gurdev Singh, Randhir Singh and JS Saini on the National and Army coaching camps, it was Dr. Arthur W. Howard’s presence and techniques that helped Singh win the historic gold medal. The 96-year-old American coach, who died in 2011, visited Singh in October 2007 and Singh spoke concerning the overseas coach’s technique within the ultimate race in Cardiff.
“At the nationwide camps, Dr. Howard will be sure he will get time to coach with me together with the opposite coaches. In Cardiff, I keep in mind how he sat by my cot all night time and mentioned to me, ‘Milkha, you’d have killed Spence to start with’. This meant that Spence would run the primary 350 meters of the 400 meters at a traditional tempo and the final 50 meters with extra push. Dr. Howard advised me to start out the race at some tempo and catch Spence. The technique labored for me and the remainder is historical past,” Singh had earlier advised The Indian Express.
It was in 1945 when Dr. Howard arrived in India from the United States as part of the United Methodius Church Mission Program and later served as head coach with the Indian athletics staff from 1948 to 1960 earlier than transferring again to the United States in 1978. Stay linked In addition to teaching nationwide groups, Howard was additionally related to the institution of the National Institute of Sports (NIS) in Patiala from 1960 to 1962 as Deputy Director and likewise coached a number of Indian athletes. It was a coincidence that Howard was in Cardiff in 1958 when he was on his approach dwelling to the United States for trip. At the 1960 Rome Olympics, the place Milkha misplaced the bronze medal in a photo-finish with Spence, Howard was not current as a result of the coach didn’t journey with the staff on the time.
“People still remember Milkha’s performance in Rome Olympics. What they don’t know is that perhaps Milkha’s victory over the same Mel Spencer in the final of the 1958 Cardiff Commonwealth Games. During that time the national coach did not travel with the team. It was just a coincidence that I was in Cardiff. Milkha still believes that if I was with him at the Rome Olympics, he would have won,” Howard advised The Indian Express throughout his go to to Chandigarh in 2007.
Howard, who first noticed Milkha throughout one of many nationwide camps, would type a life-long affiliation with Singh earlier than his loss of life. “When I first noticed Milkha, I assumed I knew this man had the potential to achieve success internationally. Howard mentioned that one factor I seen on the time was how a lot he practiced.
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With inputs from TheIndianEXPRESS
