Former national football coach and Olympian Syed Hakim passes away
Syed Shahid Hakim, former national football coach and a son of legendary football coach S.A. Rahim, passed away in a private hospital here on Sunday. He was 82. The mortal remains were shifted to his hometown, Hyderabad, where the last rites were performed.
As per family sources in Kalaburagi, Mr. Hakim had contracted COVID-19 a few months ago and later recovered. He was tested positive for dengue and admitted to a private hospital. He died of cardiac arrest before recovering from the viral flu.
A native of Hyderabad, Mr. Hakim was living in Kalaburagi for the couple of years. He was in regular touch with the district football association and trained many players in the city.
Mr. Hakim, who was in the national football squad that participated in the 1960 Olympics held in Rome, played for India for over 25 years. He also served as a FIFA referee for many international events, including the AFC Asian Cup held in 1988 in Qatar.
Team Mahindra and Mahindra trained by Mr. Hakim won the Durand Cup in 1998. He was a recipient of the prestigious Dhyan Chand Award for Life Time Achievement in 2017.
In his message, a senior IPS officer who served as Superintendent of Police in Kalaburagi Ida Martin Marbaniang told The Hindu,“He [Mr. Hakim] worked as a coach in one of the football clubs in Kalaburagi. Later, he was made the coach of the district team as well.”
