Former junior hockey star Rajiv Mishra passes away

Former hockey player Rajiv Mishra who was the star in Indias silver medal win in 1997 Junior Menrsquos World Cup has passed away at the age of 46The former India junior forward was found dead at his residence in Sarsauli area of Varanasi under mysterious circumstancesHe is survived by his wife and two childrenWe are deeply saddened by the demise of our former Junior International Hockey Player and 1997 FIH Junior Men World Cup Silver medalist Rajiv Mishra We send out our heartfelt condolences to his familyHockeyIndia IndiaKaGame RIP pictwittercomemSUCWfM03mdash Hockey India TheHockeyIndia June 23 2023Rajivs untimely death is a big setback for Indian hockey He was an exceptional hockey player with extraordinary skills his childhood coach Prem Shanker Shukla saidAccording to sources Rajiv might have died a few days back and it was his neighbours who informed the police after a foul smell started to come out of his houseRajiv considered the next big thing in Indian hockey then used to stay alone as he was posted as chief inspector of ticket CIT with Northern Railways Lucknow Division at VaranasiRajiv who hails from Leeludabait village in Hajipur in Bihar was famous for his curly long hair tied in a bandana and once had a huge fan base after his heroics at the 1997 Junior World Cup in LondonIt was Shukla who brought Rajiv to Varanasi from Kolkata at the age of 13 after Kolkatas Entally Athletic Club head Asim Ganguly requested him to help the young playerRajiv was just a normal hockey player when I enrolled him in the SAI hostel in Varanasi but he worked hard and honed his skills and rose to extraordinary levels in a short span of time Shukla saidShukla also recalled Rajivs exploits in the Junior World Cup in London where he scored a diving goal against Germany in the semifinalIndia lost the Junior World Cup final 23 to Australia but Rajiv stood out with nine goals in the tournamentBut his booming career suffered a setback just before the 1998 senior World Cup in Utrecht the Netherlands when he sustained a careerending knee injury following a body clash with the then Indian goalkeeper AB SubbiahA missmanaged rehabilitation following a surgery and lack of support from the then Indian Hockey Federation IHF finally drew curtains on a promising careerHockey India president Dilip Tirkey condoled the sad demise of RajivI am deeply saddened to hear about the untimely demise of Rajiv Mishra a talented former Junior International Hockey player His passion and dedication to the sport were truly inspiring My heartfelt condolences to his family friends and the entire hockey community Tirkey tweetedI am deeply saddened to hear about the untimely demise of Rajeev Mishra a talented former Junior International Hockey player His passion and dedication to the sport were truly inspiring My heartfelt condolences to his family friends and the entire hockey community pictwittercom39Ey9rZzRcmdash Dilip Kumar Tirkey DilipTirkey June 23 2023With PTI inputsAlso Read Coach Kumar wants players to inculcate winning habit ahead of Junior World Cup