Former India international and Mumbai Hockey Association (MHA) secretary Gurbax Singh Grewal, a member of the 1968 Olympic Games bronze medal-winning national team, passed away in Chandigarh due to a heart attack at the age of 84. Grewal, the brother of Olympian Balbir Singh, served as the Sports Officer with Western Railways in Mumbai and later became the Honorary Secretary of The Mumbai Hockey Association Ltd alongside former India captain and coach Joaquim Carvalho.
Born on April 1, 1942, in Lyallpur, Punjab Province of British India (now in Pakistan), Gurbax Singh moved to Mumbai in his 20s to play hockey for Western Railways. He was a key player in the Indian team that secured a bronze medal at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico. Known for his speed as a forward, Grewal transitioned into coaching Mumbai teams after his playing career, having represented Western Railways locally and Indian Railways nationally.
Following his tenure as a Sports Officer at Western Railways, Grewal ventured into administrative roles, winning the election for Honorary Secretary of the Mumbai Hockey Association in 2010. During his leadership, the MHA’s Mahindra Stadium underwent renovation, facilitated by an agreement with the Mumbai Cricket Association for land transfer to install floodlights at the Wankhede Stadium before the 2010 World Cup.
