Asian hockey family is deeply aggrieved upon losing such a dear friend. Mr. Singh was a magnificent hockey lover. His contributions towards the development of sport and his benignity towards the sport sodality can never be overlooked. The loss of such a valuable person undeniably makes our hearts heavy and our time deplorable among hockey fraternity. His services will always bespeak the space induced by his demise.
Dato Fumio Ogura President of Asian Hockey Federation, recalls the time of the late 70’s and early 80’s when he got associated with Raj Kumar. He was then an important colleague of Hardial Singh father of African Hockey, Brigadier Manzoor Hussain Atif Vice President of FIH and Late Mr. Muneyoshi Ueda father figure of Japanese Hockey and many other veterans and leaders of Global Hockey. Raj Kumar was one of the custodians of Hockey during that era.
Apart from Mr. Singh’s services for the development of hockey he will also be remembered for his countless achievements. He was a marvelous hockey player, manager and a splendid admin. He was a glorious hockey educationist who produced hundreds of gallant sportsmen. Presidency of Indonesian Hockey was a mere tribute to his infinite services. He is regarded as a father of Hockey in Indonesia. His dedication towards the service of sport was widely spread out to the continental and international floors, for which he was rewarded FIH President’s Award in 2018.
On an occasion of such a painful tragedy, President of Asian Hockey Federation, Dato Fumio Ogura pays his tribute to myriad services of such a brilliant veteran on behalf of Asian Hockey family,
“Good friends are hard to find, harder to leave and impossible to forget, my friendship with Raj Kumar was not of a day or two, we spent 40 years of our life like brothers. My pain for his demise cannot be mentioned in words and is far from imagination. Not to mention his services for hockey, for which he will always be remembered, he will always live in my heart.”
