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Leslie Claudius stands tall among a bevy of Indian hockey legends. Born on March 25, 1927, Claudius was hailed as one of the finest right-halves of his time.
For someone who started with football and even played in the IFA Shield, Leslie's rise in the Indian hockey turf was meteoric. An ace right-half with great distribution and tackling skills, Leslie virtually owned that position in the world-beating Indian team that won three consecutive Olympic gold medals from 1948 to 1956.
Despite figuring in the Guinness Book of World Records for having won the maximum number of Olympic medals in hockey--three gold and a silver-Lesli Claudius would also be remembered as the captain of the Indian team that lost the Olympic gold in 1960 Tokyo Games after reigning supreme for 28 years.
Claudius was awarded the Padma Shri in 1971 for his contribution to Indian hockey.
