Hockey legend Nasir Ali reflects on Pakistan's triumph at Los Angeles
Pakistan emerged victorious at the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games.
ISLAMABAD (APP) – Nasir Ali, a key player with the Pakistan hockey team that emerged victorious at the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games recalled the memories of that competition, revealing the impact that winning Olympic gold in the world’s prestigious event has had on his life.
“The most exciting thing for any player who plays internationally is to be a part of the Olympics. Being able to represent my country at the Olympics was a big deal for me. The sense of pride and honour you feel is inexplicable,” he said in an interview with the International Hockey Federation (FIH).
“We were all so overwhelmed. We were a team of 16, 14 of which were participating in the Olympics for the very first time. The captain and vice-captain had played in the 1976 Olympics. I still remember that before leaving for the US, during all our training sessions, our coaches would motivate us, and every day we would stare at the posters plastered on the walls of our rooms that said: “WE ARE GONNA BRING THE GOLD MEDAL HOME.” We had little experience, but we were fighters who had strong determination and perseverance.”
He said in their pool, Pakistan did not lose a single match as it was either a win or a draw.
“The first match, against New Zealand, was a draw, second against Canada was a win, third was a draw with Holland, fourth against Kenya was a win before a draw against Great Britain in the fifth match.”
According to Nasir after the match with Great Britain Pakistan players were very sad and demotivated as they felt they had lost their chance because it left Holland needing a 5-0 win against Kenya to qualify for the semi-final, which they thought the Dutch would do.
“We were there in the stadium to buck up the Kenya’s team. We were yelling and praying for their win. When the game ended 3-0 to Holland, we qualified for the semi-finals [ahead of the Dutch] on the basis of goal average. At this point, our morale became really high and we felt hopeful that we could actually win this. But, our [semi-final] match was against Australia, the strongest team in the competition. When we won 1-0, at that point we just knew it and nothing could stand in our way. We were mentally at peace and confident that the gold medal was going to be ours. We were very motivated and positive.
“The final was against Germany, and we won 2-1. When our team was called to the victory stand and our National Anthem was playing, with my country’s flag being raised, it was the proudest moment. We were all crying tears of joy and running in the ground and thanking the crowd who were cheering for us. It is my sweetest and fondest memory from the 1984 Olympics.”
Nasir also heaped praises on Hassan Sardar, who was at his brilliant best in Los Angeles, scoring ten goals including both in the semi-final and final. “He was phenomenal throughout his career and always exceeded the expectations. The team was always under tremendous pressure and incomplete without him. His mere presence in the ground would uplift our spirits. It takes the efforts of the entire team to win any match, and because of his outstanding goals in the semi-final and final, we won the gold medal,” he said.
The erstwhile defender, who represented the Green Shirts from 1981 to 1988, making 150 international appearances that after winning gold at the Olympics, he earned a lot of respect. “When you become a gold medallist, fame and a nation’s love follows. I received respect and admiration at every event that I attended. The words ‘Olympic gold medallist’ were added before my name was announced, which made me very proud.
“Once you win the Olympics, you become the nation’s pride. The youth looks up to you and want to become like you. They feel motivated and want to follow in your footsteps. You receive love, admiration, and respect of the nation, and that is priceless. Once you become an Olympian, you have a big responsibility on your shoulders and have to work even harder than before. You make sure your performance is up to the mark so that you don’t let down your people,” he added.
