HYDERABAD: Syed Shahid Hakim, Olympian and son of the legendary football coach S A Rahim, died of heart attack in a hospital in Gulbarga on Sunday morning. The 82-year-old Hakim, who was part of India's 1960 Rome Olympic football team, is survived by his wife, one son and two daughters.
Hakim was only the second footballer to win the prestigious Dhyan Chand Award for Life Time Achievement in 2017. He had also served as the chief project director at Sports Authority of India (SAI) for a decade and managed Bengal Mumbai FC in the Mumbai Football League from 2004 to 2005.
Hakim had tested positive for Covid-19 in last July but recovered in a few days after struggling to find a hospital bed during the peak of the pandemic.
He had even attended a felicitation function organised by the Telangana Football Association (TFA) on the Independence day here in the city.
According to his friend and former state footballer Shameem, Hakim suffered a heart attack on his way to Gulbarga on Wednesday and was admitted to a hospital there and never recovered from that.
Hakim had aspired to bring the old glory back to Hyderabad's football when India had reached the semifinals at the1956 Melbourne Olympics under the coaching of his father SA Rahim. Incidentally, eight players in the team were from Hyderabad.
Hakim took up refereeing after his playing career in 1970 and had officiated in 33 international games till 1989, including the 1988 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar. He was also assistant coach of the Indian team in 1981.
Former Indian national coach and Dronacharya award winner Shabbir Ali expressed shock over Hakim's death. "He's a good footballer and son of the legendary coach SA Rahim. I personally know from my playing days. He was good a sports administrator and referee also. His death is a big loss to Hyderabad football," Shabbir Ali said.
