India is country where Cricket is more than a religion and cricketers are treated as demi-gods. Other sports have been woefully neglected, some players like Dhyanchand and Milkha Singh are still treated respectfully, but the sports they represent still does not find acceptance on the same level as cricket. The people of this country seem to have forgotten the greatest Indian football coach Rahim saab, the man who put India on the football map. He is regarded as the architect of modern Indian football. Basically a teacher by profession, he was a good motivator and his tenure as a coach is regarded as the "Golden Age" of football in India.
Under the coaching of Syed Abdul Rahim, Indian football team gave some of their best performances. Under his able guidance, the national team became a force to reckon with in Asian football from 1950 to 1962. They won the Asian Games gold medal in 1951 in New Delhi and in Jakarta in 1962. But it was their amazing run at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics that made them the stuff of legends. They finished fourth, a feat that none of the successive national sides could repeat. And, Rahim, the man who made history, is a forgotten hero today.
He was handed the reins of the Indian National team in 1950 along with the responsibilities of managing the Hyderabad City Police team as well. With the Hyderabad club, Rahim won five consecutive Rovers Cups which remains a record to this day. He also reached five Durand Cup finals with the team winning three of them. Rahim had the terrific passion towards game that he took the team to the 1962 Jakarta Games and won the gold despite suffering from lung cancer. A few months later, he passed away. Football is on the rise in this country. Several sports enthusiasts have taken it upon themselves to rekindle the dying flame of football. However, this great hero still remains forgotten.
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