Abdul Khaliq (athlete)

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Abdul Khaliq

Personal information
Nickname(s)	The Flying Bird of Asia[1]
Born	(1933-11-29)29 November 1933 Jand Awan, Punjab, British India (present-day Punjab, Pakistan)
Died	10 March 1988(1988-03-10) (aged 54) Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan
Sport
Country	Pakistan
Sport	Track and field
Event(s)	100m, 200m, 4*100m, 100y, 110y, 200y, 220y,
Medal record Men's Athletics Representing  Pakistan Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games – – – World Championships – – – Asian Games 2 2 1 Commonwealth Games – – – Total 2 2 1 Asian Games 1954 Manila 100m 1954 Manila 4x100 m relay 1958 Tokyo 100m 1958 Tokyo 200m 1958 Tokyo 4x100 m relay
Military career
Allegiance	Pakistan
Years of service	1948–1978
Battles/wars	Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
Awards	Pride of Performance

Subedar Abdul Khaliq (Punjabi, Urdu: عبد الخالق; 23 March 1933 – 10 March 1988),^[2] also known as Parinda e Asia (Urdu for The Flying Bird of Asia),^[1] was a Pakistani sprinter from 8 Medium Regiment Artillery who won 36 international gold medals, 15 international silver medals, and 12 International bronze medals for Pakistan.^[3] He competed in the 100m, 200m and 4 x 100 metres relay. He participated in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics and the 1960 Rome Olympics. He also participated in the 1954 Asian Games and the 1958 Asian Games. During the 1956 Indo-Pak Meet held in Delhi, Khaliq earned the title of "The Flying Bird of Asia" from the then Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, who was mesmerised by his performance during the event.^[1]

He was born in the village of Jand Awan in Chakwal, Punjab, now in Pakistan, and died on 10 March 1988 in Rawalpindi.^[2]

International career[]

1954[]

1954 Asian Games[]

In the 1954 Asian Games Abdul Khaliq set a new Asian Games record of 100-meter in 10.6 seconds by beating the previous record of 10.8 seconds, held by Lavy Pinto of India in 1951. Abdul Khaliq was dubbed as Fastest Man of Asia.^[4][5] Abdul Khaliq won Gold and Silver Medal from 100-meter and 4x100m relay race respectively in the 1954 Asian Games.

He also played in the World Military Games, held in Canada.^{[clarification needed]}

Commonwealth and British Empire Games[]

Abdul Khaliq was a 100-yard semi-finalist and a 4x110-yards finalist in the 1954 Commonwealth and British Games. ^[3]

1955[]

• Represented the World Military Games at Athens (Greece)

1956[]

Indo-Pak Meet at Delhi[]

Abdul Khaliq created new Asian records in both the 100- and 200-meter events. The Indian Prime Minister at the time, Jawaharlal Nehru, also chief guest, dubbed him "The Flying Bird of Asia" for his tremendous performance.^[6] Abdul Khaliq won the 100 m dash by defeating Indian athlete V.K. Rai, winning the 100 m Gold medal with a time of 10.4-second. Abdul Khaliq triumphed in the 200 m race and defeated Lavy Pinto of India and created a new record by clocking in 21.4 seconds. ^[3]

World Military Games at Berlin[]

Abdul Khaliq Finished third in the final of the 100-meter, with 10.4 seconds, equal to his Delhi timing.^[3][7] He won the 100-, 200-, and 4x100- meter bronze medals.

Pakistan Athletics Training Program in England[]

Abdul Khaliq defeated Britain Number 1 and Number 2, Shanton and Spooner, in both sprints.^[3][7][8] He won the 100-yard in 10.1 sec at an international meet in high land games on a turf track which was rendered wet due to incessant rains in the morning. Here, he defeated athletes from 15 countries in Europe. Some of the leading coaches described it as a very good performance and said it was equal to 9.5 sec on a cinder track.

Victorian Relay Championship[]

Abdul Khaliq ran a 100-meter race in 10.4 seconds, equalling the Australian National record at Olympic Park. Khaliq's was only one-tenth of a second outside of Bobby Morrow's Gold Medal in the Olympic Games' 100 m final. He won the 100 m gold medal and the 4x100  yd gold medal.

Melbourne Olympics[]

In 1956, Abdul Khaliq was at his best. He was a semi-finalist in both 100m and 200m races. Khaliq's time in 200m race which is 21.1 seconds was the best time in heats but he could not produce the same in the semi-final and got 4th position. This performance of Khaliq's put him top seven athletes of the Olympics. It is compulsory to mentioned here that on 24 November 1956, the day of the semi-finals and the final of the 100 m in the Olympics, Abdul Khaliq ran two hard races on the same day as "Anchor Man" for the winning Pakistan team in the 4x110-yard in the Victorian Relay Championship before tackling the 100 m dash of the semi-final. With Khaliq running the last leg, the Pakistan team romped home 10 yards clear in the final clocking 41.6 seconds in the Victorian championship, which was one-tenth of a second outside of the national record held by the Australian Olympics team.^{[9][3][7] [10] [11] [12] [13][14]}

Final Standing in Melbourne Olympics

1957[]

1957 was one of the best years for Abdul Khaliq. In this year Abdul Khaliq won 11 International Gold Medals and 1 International Silver Medal by participating in multiple events held by England, Iran, Greece, and Scotland.^[3]

1958[]

Khaliq participated in the 3rd Asian Games held in Tokyo. He defended his title in the 100 m race,^[3][15] by defeating Kyohei Ushio of Japan. Abdul Khaliq won 3 medals including Gold in the 100m race, Silver in the 200m race, and Bronze Medal from the 4x100m relay race in the 3rd Asian Games. With Khaliq's contributions, Pakistan secured 2nd position in Athletics and 6th in the overall rankings.

Abdul Khaliq also 3 more medals in 1958 by taking part in different events held in Japan, China, and Scotland. He also took part in British Empire and Commonwealth Games held at Cardiff and was a semi-finalist in 100-yards clocking at 9.8 seconds.^[3]

1959[]

In 1959, Abdul Khaliq visited many countries like England, Sweden, Irish, Wales, Highland, Ireland and won 9 International Gold Medals, 7 International Silver Medal, and 4 International Bronze Medal by participated in many indifferent events held in multiple cities.^[3]

1960[]

1960 Olympics Games
Abdul Khaliq took part in 1960 Olympics Games held in Rome but he could not qualify for next rounds in both 100m and 4x100m relay race event. ^[16][7]

International Meet at Lahore
This event in which Khaliq won Gold Medal in 100m race with a time of 10.4 seconds and Bronze Medal in 200m race and again Gold Medal in 4x100m relay race timing 41.5 seconds was picturized in the Indian movie Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. ^[17]

1962[]

In 1962, Abdul Khaliq won 3 International Medals from World Military Games held in Holland and International Meet held in Malaysia. Abdul Khaliq also took Part 1962 Asian Games held at Jakarta but could not qualify for the finals in both 100m and 200m races.

Coaching career[]

Abdul Khaliq in the center with Dr. Abdul Waheed Mughal and International Coaches in 1987 at West Germany

Athletic coaches clinic attended[]

• 1967 at Murree for 6 weeks under German Coach
• 1974 at Hassan Abdal under USA Coaches
• 1976 at Lahore under Russian Coaches
• 1981 at Rawalpindi under I.O.C Coaches

Coaching[]

• Army Coach 1965, 1966, 1967, 1970 & 1971
• Punjab 1974 & 1975
• National Coach 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977 & 1978
• Joined National Sports Trust Asian Athletics Coach 23 December 1975
• Punjab Sports Board Teachers Clinics
• National Coaches Clinic 1976
• Local PTI Clinic Lahore 1979

Achievements[]

International Medals (numbers as per events)

Khaliq's statue in Ayub Park Rawalpindi, Pakistan

Presidential Award Khaliq was given the Presidential Award Pride of Performance in 1958 by President Ayub Khan for his achievements.

Medals (international)[]

Sr. No.	Year	Venue	Country	Competitions	Event	Medal	Time
Represented  Pakistan
1	1954	Manila	Philippines	2nd Asian Games	100m	Gold	10.6sec (New Asian Record)
2	1954	Manila	Philippines	2nd Asian Games	4*100m	Silver	41.5 sec
3	1954	Madawala	England	Triangular Meet	100m	Gold
4	1956	Delhi	India	Pakistan vs India	100m	Gold	10.4sec (New Asian Record) (New Pakistan Record)
5	1956	Delhi	India	Pakistan vs India	200m	Gold	21.4sec (New Asian record) (New Pakistan Record)
6	1956	Delhi	India	Pakistan vs India	4*100m	Silver
7	1956	Berlin	Germany	International Military Track and Field Championship	100m	Bronze	10.4sec
8	1956	Berlin	Germany	International Military Track and Field Championship	200m	Bronze	21.4/10sec
9	1956	England	England	Pakistan Athlatics Training Programme	100y	Gold	10.1sec
10	1956	London	England	England National Competitions	100m	Silver
11	1956	Edenburgh	Highland	Highland Games	100y	Gold
12	1956	Kelang	Australia	International Meet Australia	200m	Silver
13	1956	Victoria	Australia	Victorian Relay Championship	100m	Gold	10.4 sec
14	1956	Victoria	Australia	Victorian Relay Championship	4* 100m	Gold	41.6 sec
15	1956	Bandigo	Australia	International Meet Australia	100m	Bronze
16	1956	England	England	Victorian Open Competitions	100m	Gold
17	1957	White City	England	London vs New York	100y	Gold
18	1957	White City	England	London vs New York	100m	Gold	10.6sec
19	1957	Glasgow	England	Rangers Meet	120y	Gold	11.6sec
20	1957	Glasgow	England	Rangers Meet	220y	Gold	21.8sec
21	1957	Manchester	England	International Competitions	100y	Gold	9.6sec
22	1957	Manchester	England	Open Meet	100y	Gold
23	1957	Dublin	England	Irish International Meet	100y	Gold
24	1957	Tehran	Iran	Pak Iran Competitions	100m	Gold	10.8sec
25	1957	Tehran	Iran	Pak Iran Competitions	200m	Gold	22sec
26	1957	Tehran	Iran	Pak Iran Competitions	4*100m	Gold	40.8sec
27	1957	Aten	Greece	World Military Meet Athens	100m	Silver
28	1957	Edinburgh	Scotland	Highland Games	100y	Gold	9.9sec
29	1958	Tokyo	Japan	Japan International	100m	Silver
30	1958	Hong Kong	China	International Meet	100m	Gold
31	1958	Tokyo	Japan	3rd Asian Games	100m	Gold	10.9sec
32	1958	Tokyo	Japan	3rd Asian Games	200m	Silver	21.7sec
33	1958	Tokyo	Japan	3rd Asian Games	4*100m	Bronze	41.5
34	1958	Edinburgh	Scotland	Dual Empire Games	100y	Bronze	9.9sec
35	1959	Bradford	England	International Meet England	100y	Gold	10.1sec
36	1959	Bradford	England	International Meet England	220y	Silver
37	1959	Bright Hill	England	International Meet England	100y	Gold
38	1959	Delin	Irish	Irish International Meet	100m	Gold
39	1959	Delin	Irish	Irish International Meet	200m	Gold
40	1959	Cardif	Wales	Wales International	100m	Gold
41	1959	Cardif	Wales	Wales International	200m	Gold
42	1959	Glasgow	England	International Meet	120y	Gold	11.6sec
43	1959	Malmo	Sweden	International Meet	100m	Silver
44	1959	Malmo	Sweden	International Meet	200m	Silver
45	1959	Gavel	Sweden	International Meet	200m	Silver	21.9sec
46	1959	Stockholm	Sweden	International Meet	100m	Silver	10.7sec
47	1959	Stockholm	Sweden	International Meet	200m	Bronze	21.6sec
48	1959	Boras	Sweden	International Meet	200m	Gold
49	1959	Gothenburgh	Sweden	International Meet	100m	Silver	21.8sec
50	1959	Edinburgh	Highland	Highland Games	100m	Silver
51	1959	Dublin	Ireland	International Track and Field Meet	220y	Gold	22.2sec
52	1959	Cardif	Wales	International Dual Meet	100y	Bronze	10sec
53	1959	Cardif	Wales	International Dual Meet	220y	Bronze
54	1959	Maimoe	Sweden	International Meet	100m	Bronze
55	1960	Lahore	Pakistan	First youth Festival and Trianguler International Meet	100m	Gold	10.4sec
56	1960	Lahore	Pakistan	First youth Festival and Trianguler International Meet	200m	Bronze
57	1960	Lahore	Pakistan	First youth Festival and Trianguler International Meet	4*100m	Gold	41.5sec
58	1960	Medawala	England	International Games	200m	Gold
59	1960	Cario	Egypt	Egypt International Games	100m	Gold
60	1960	Cario	Egypt	Egypt International Games	200m	Gold
61	1962	Holand	Holand	World Military Games	100m	Bronze
62	1962	Ipoh	Malaysia	International Meet	100m	Silver
63	1962	Ipoh	Malaysia	International Meet	200m	Bronze	22.1sec

Running statistics[]

External links[]

• Official Facebook page

References[]