Indian sprint legend Milkha Singh passed away on June 18 after a month-long battle with COVID-19. He was 91.
Singh, who is survived by his golfer son Jeev Milkha Singh and three daughters, died at 11.30 p.m, a family spokesperson told media.
The Padma Shri awardee had recently lost his wife — former national volleyball captain Nirmal Kaur (85) — to the dreaded coronavirus, when she passed away at a private hospital in Mohali.
The athlete had contracted COVID-19 in May but was tested negative on May 16 before being shifted to general ICU in a hospital. However, his condition became critical with complications, including fever and dipping oxygen saturation levels.
Milkha Singh, who was a four-time Asian Games gold medallist and 1958 Commonwealth Games champion, is remembered for his greatest performance — fourth-place finish in the 400m final of the 1960 Rome Olympics. He had also represented India in the 1956 and 1964 Olympic, before being awarded the Padma Shri in1959.