Ali Iqtidar Shah Dara (April 1, 1915 – January 16, 1981) was an Indian and later

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

field hockey Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ci ...

player and the longest-serving hockey manager who competed in the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (German: ''Olympische Sommerspiele 1936''), officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad (German: ''Spiele der XI. Olympiade'') and commonly known as Berlin 1936 or the Nazi Olympics, were an international multi-sp ...

and the

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and also known as London 1948) were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, England, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus ca ...

. In 1936, he was a member of the Indian field hockey team, which won the

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have bee ...

at the

. He played two matches as forward. "Dara played in the hockey team at

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

in 1936 when an undivided India won the gold, defeating the home team Germany (8-1). Sitting in the VIP stand was Chancellor

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

, leader of the Nazi party ruling Germany." Dara was also a serving officer in the

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...

. His army regiment was sent to

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, where Dara was captured. In 1947, British India was divided into India and Pakistan. Dara, who hailed from West Punjab province of undivided India, opted to live in Pakistan. Twelve years later he participated in the 1948 tournament for Pakistan as the team captain. Dara was easily the best choice to construct and lead Pakistan's Hockey team to 1948 Summer Olympics. He played all seven matches as forward. They faced Holland in the match for third place, which the two teams drew with a goal each. This match was replayed later, during which Pakistan was defeated 4-1, leaving them in 4th place. Dara was the manager of the Pakistan Hockey Team at 1976 Montreal Olympic Games where Pakistan won the bronze medal.

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* * 1915 births 1981 deaths Field hockey players from Faisalabad Pakistani male field hockey players Olympic field hockey players of India Olympic field hockey players of Pakistan Field hockey players at the 1936 Summer Olympics Field hockey players at the 1948 Summer Olympics Indian male field hockey players Olympic gold medalists for India Olympic medalists in field hockey Medalists at the 1936 Summer Olympics {{Pakistan-fieldhockey-bio-stub