Indian Hockey Team created history in the Paris Olympics 2024. They won the bronze medal in Paris winning 2-1 against Spain in the third-place match at the Paris 2024 Olympics last month. This gave them back-to-back Olympic podium finishes for the first time since 1972, after finishing third in Tokyo three years ago. The amazing achievement was followed by a fifth Asian Champions Trophy. Here they won 1-0 over China in the final last week.
However, there has been a turn of events after their back-to-back podium finish in the two separate competitions. The Hockey Team midfielder Hardik Singh disclosed a “shocking” and “shameful” event in which the national squad was disregarded upon arrival at the airport due to the viral sensation Dolly Chaiwala. The fans ignored them at the airport. They cared more about taking a selfie with Dolly Chaiwala.
He became famous after a video of him serving tea to Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates went viral. Hardik described the incident while doing a podcast interaction on SMTV YouTube. This a very disrespectful moment for the sports stars. They have been the nation’s name on the world stage and giving their best to make the fans happy.
Here’s the video
Hardik Singh feels lost after fans’ behaviour
Fans are the one who needs to value the right people at the right time and not just go with what’s trending. The 26-year-old highlighted how fan recognition helps athletes raise their spirits. The Indian hockey team will return to action in the second half of October, hosting Germany for a highly anticipated two-match bilateral series at New Delhi’s Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium.
Hardik said, “I saw it with my own eyes, at the airport. Harmanpreet [Singh], I, Mandeep [Singh]; there were 5-6 of us. Dolly Chaiwala was also there. People were getting themselves clicked with and did not recognise us. We started looking at each other (feeling awkward). Harmanpreet has scored more than 150 goals, and Mandeep has more than 100 field goals.”