Pakistan hockey’s legendary goalkeeper Olympian Mansoor Ahmed passed away on May 12 at a hospital not so far from the ground he used to practice and play at.

There had been a lot of reports about his deteriorating condition for weeks before his passing. Mansoor was admitted to the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases and was in need of a heart transplant. There was some talk of him receiving a mechanical heart in Pakistan soon, but he wanted to go to India for a normal heart transplant.

He had also, some time ago, received a pacemaker for his heart. Doctors had implanted stents to help open up his blood vessels.

After receiving support from the Shahid Afridi Foundation, an NGO run by the cricketer, his family was going to apply to the Indian Embassy for a visa earlier this week, but Mansoor suffered heart failure before it could happen. He had turned 50 in January.

Mansoor Ahmed, who passed away on May 12, was one of the finest goalkeepers in the history of field hockey. Eos looks back at his career and talks to some of his colleagues about his life and sporting achievements

Mansoor started playing hockey as a little kid. Playing at the YMCA ground, he was soon spotted and picked up by the Pakistan Customs Department. It didn’t take him long to become a part of the national junior hockey team. A fine show at the third Men’s Junior Hockey World Cup in Vancouver in 1985 and other events, including the next one in Ipoh (1989), opened place for him in the national team.

As a part of the national team, he featured in the Seoul (1988), Barcelona (1992) and Atlanta (1996) Olympics, three World Cups — London (1986), Lahore (1990) and Sydney (1994) — besides playing in several editions of the Champions Trophy, Asia Cup, Indira Gandhi Gold Cup and Azlan Shah Hockey tournament. All in all, he played 338 international matches. He was declared the best goalkeeper of the 1994 World Cup by the International Hockey Federation (FIH) and was selected in the FIH World XI after the feat.

For his contributions to Pakistan hockey, Mansoor was presented with the President Award in 1988 and the President’s Pride of Performance in 1994.

Just last year, the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) also nominated him as manager of the Pakistan junior hockey team for the Muscat tour.

EXPERT PENALTY STROKE STOPPER

“A young death is tragic as it is, but this young man was a national hero,” says Olympian Rashid ul Hasan while sharing his thoughts on the late goalkeeper with Eos.

“He did not seem well when I saw him three or four months ago. We had met over lunch and something was off. I asked him if he was okay, since he also sounded different, and he told me that he had a chest infection. I didn’t delve on the subject any further then out of politeness,” he says.

“Though Mansoor was quite junior to me, we were in the same department — Customs. He was my roommate when we played for Customs and I found him to be a very caring and considerate individual. He gave his seniors a lot of respect,” he says.

Speaking about his game, Hasan says that he was an expert penalty stroke stopper. “He read his opponent very well and moved according to his [opponent’s] movements. The decision for both the Champions Trophy [final] in Lahore in 1994 and the Sydney World Cup [final] the same year fell on penalty strokes and he solely won both events for Pakistan through his expertise.”

‘HE WAS A NATURAL’

Fellow goalkeeper Shahid Ali Khan also says that Mansoor was junior to him by several years, but since they played around the same time they belonged to the same era of Pakistan hockey. “Had we played in different eras Pakistan hockey would not be undergoing the problems that it faces in goalkeeping now,” he says.

“With great flexibility and perfect footwork, Mansoor had everything required for a goalkeeper. He was a natural,” he says.

“Eighty percent of the credit for winning the 1994 World Cup goes to him alone. Had he not stopped those penalty strokes against Germany in the semi-final and against Holland in the final, Pakistan would have finished eighth or ninth,” he points out.

“It is so sad that a player of such calibre simply wasted away. He was so weak in the end that his kidneys were also affected along with his heart. There is no fund with the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) for players who need help, which is a shame,” he adds.

“This country should not forget his contribution to Pakistan hockey.”

‘I LOOKED UP TO HIM’

Olympian Ahmed Alam, another fine goalkeeper, who was slightly junior to Mansoor, says that although he started his own career from his alma mater, the Habib Public School, their common ground was the YMCA. “When I joined the junior camp there in 1989/90, Mansoor was already a part of the junior team. I looked up to him,” he says.

“Then in 1991, after our senior goalkeeper Shahid Ali Khan was dropped from the side, Mansoor became the team’s main goalkeeper and I was his backup,” he says. “I remember when he was the team vice captain and how he used to sit with us to discuss the game and various techniques. His role in the 1994 World Cup win deserved more respect than what he actually got,” he adds.

I remember when he was the team vice captain and how he used to sit with us to discuss the game and various techniques. His role in the 1994 World Cup win deserved more respect than what he actually got.”

“Staying at the PSB hostel during national camps, we would often hop over to the nearby Aabpara Market in the evenings for French Fries, tea or juice,” Alam recounts some of his fond memories.

“And during his burial in Karachi last Sunday, I just happened to find myself at the same Aabpara. I missed him so much. I can’t describe what I felt then,” he says with a lump in his throat.

‘WE HAVE LOST A GEM’

PHF Secretary and Mansoor’s team captain Olympian Shahbaz Ahmed Senior, who was some nine months younger than him, says that Mansoor was not just a great player and goalkeeper, but also a good human being. “We have lost a gem. He was my vice captain in both the Pakistan junior and national teams and I always found him very focused, coming up with fine strategies for the field after carefully studying each team,” he says.

“And then he made maximum effort on his part when on the field. He was a great fighter, and that combined with his skill under the bar brought off many spectacular saves,” he concluds.

The writer is a member of staff She tweets @HasanShazia

Published in Dawn, EOS, May 20th, 2018