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A team trained by Rajinder Singh, a member of the 1980 Olympic champion Indian hockey team, is the cynosure of all eyes at the centenary celebrations of Sikh Union Club, the oldest organization of Indian expatriates in general and Sikhs in particular.

Prominent sports personalities who have donned colors for various countries, including India, are converging on Nairobi, the hometown of the Sikh Union Club, to join the festivities, which include an invitational international hockey tournament featuring teams from India, Malaysia, the United Kingdom, Nigeria, and the hosts, Kenya.

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The Malaysian veteran team is led by Olympian Sarjit Singh, while the United Kingdom team is led by Harvinder Singh Sibia, also an Olympian.

Sikh Union’s centenary celebrations got a boost when Punjab-based Roundglass, a leading hockey academy, decided to send its young team to participate in the hockey festival that has touched its competitive peak with separate competitions for men and masters. The Roundglass team is trained by none other than Rajinder Singh, one of the top scorers of the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games, where India won its last Olympic gold.

Beyond the field of play, the centenary programme led by chairman Hardial Kalsi has leaned heavily into legacy projects and global engagement. The club has now started academies in various sports to spot talent at the grassroots level. bringing together members and stakeholders to mark a century of sporting excellence.

“Standards have been set, and only the sky’s the limit,” Kalsi said, framing the ambition driving Sikh Union’s next chapter as it builds on its status as one of Kenya’s premier multi-sport institutions.

For the grand opening ceremony of the centenary celebrations, Harbinder Singh Sethi, a prominent Sikh businessman from South Africa, was the chief guest.

The celebrations mark the culmination of a month-long programme that has fused sport, culture, and community engagement into a landmark 100-year milestone / Maninder K Chandhoke

Harbinder Singh Sethi, who moved from Tanzania to South Africa, is also credited with building the first Sikh gurdwara in Johannesburg. There are several big names from yesteryears to be part of the celebrations and future development programmes of the club.

“We are delighted to have teams from India, the United Kingdom, Malaysia, and Nigeria joining our local teams, including Sikh Union Club, in a competition that will hopefully have its medal round matches on a brand-new deep blue synthetic surface being laid at Dasmesh Stadium of the Club,” says Manjinder (Munai) Singh Bansal, Chairman of the Centenary Celebrations Committee.

Finishing touches are being given to the deep blue surface under the watchful eyes of six-time Olympian Avtar Singh Sohal. Avtar Singh, “Tari” to his ardent fans, had taken upon himself the onerous responsibility of generating millions of dollars to lay a brand-new surface at the Club to mark the centenary celebrations.

“We were hopeful that the new deep blue surface would be ready before the start of the hockey event last week, but incessant rains in April and the first week of May have delayed the commissioning of the new surface,” says Avtar Singh Sohal, who has been watching the work round the clock. “It would be the first private club in Kenya to have the latest deep blue surface,” he adds.

The organising secretary, Del Mudher, says that it is not hockey alone that has been keeping the Sikh Union Club in the news all these years of its golden existence. Besides contributing 26 Olympians and several hockey World Cuppers, the club has been a known force in cricket and the home ground of East African cricket. It has a rich history of producing some of the top cricketers for East Africa. Besides, one of the top motor rallyists, Tiger Joginder Singh, has also been a product of this club.

The celebrations mark the culmination of a month-long programme that has fused sport, culture, and community engagement into a landmark 100-year milestone. The cricket tournament, 8 overs a side, was staged at the club's historic international standard cricket ground. The hosts, Sikh Union Club, were a little unlucky to end without the title and finished as runners-up.

The club also had a packed schedule of competitions in other sports that have already seen strong participation in badminton, golf, football, darts, and a treasure hunt, underscoring the club’s enduring multi-sport footprint. The golf event had nearly 200 participants teeing off.

Kenya international Sukhdeep Singh set the early tone of the cricket festivities with a commanding display for the host team.

The hockey tournament will run until May 9, sustaining the competitive tempo of the celebrations before the curtain falls on May 10 with a grand banquet at the club, bringing together members and stakeholders to mark a century of sporting excellence.

 

Discover more at New India Abroad.