Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal Friday recommended three-time Olympic gold medallist and hockey legend Balbir Singh (Senior) for the Bharat Ratna, the country's highest civilian award.
Balbir is the only player in the world to score five goals in an Olympic final of any team sport. This unique record, which features in the Guinness Book of World Records, has stood unchallenged since the 1952 Helsinki Olympics.
In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Badal apprised the prime minister of Balbir's achievements.
"Balbir Singh shines as a rare and most outstanding legend in his lifetime and no other sportsperson in the country, or for that matter from any other country, has ever scaled the heights of Olympic glory as he has done," Badal said in a statement.
