Mid-Day Anniversary Special: The grass was really `khaas` for Bandra boy Viren Rasquinha

Viren Rasquinha, Hockey Olympian 

When Viren Rasquinha stepped on to the hockey ground at St Stanislaus High School in Bandra for the first time as a nine-year-old, he never imagined that the grass surface would be his stepping stone to success. In fact, he was so young that he didn’t even know what position he wanted to 
play in.

Rasquinha said, “This was part of my school’s U-12 coaching camp for the Mumbai Schools Sports Association (MSSA) hockey tournament. We were called at 6am and when I got there, the first thing the assistant coach asked me was what position I wanted to play in. I had no idea, and just mumbled right outer [a forward position on the hockey field more associated with the flanks]. I think that was the only day in my life that I played as a right outer.” 

The instinctive defender in Rasquinha made him feel left out as a right outer and he immediately switched to the midfield position thereafter and went on to one of Indian hockey’s finest midfielders (centre-half).

“My coach was Marcellus Gomes, former India player and Olympian, and he soon identified my talent and would even have extra training sessions to groom me. So, while regular school coaching was from 6am to 7:45am, followed by school from 9am to 4pm, I would then return to the ground for my training sessions with coach Gomes. I was just a kid and this was extremely tiring, but I loved every moment of my time on that ground. The ultimate reward for all that hard work was the prestigious green and yellow St Stanislaus school team jersey. I always felt proud wearing it,” Rasquinha, 44, added.

The ground even gave Rasquinha his first taste of success. “I was just nine, but still made it to the U-12 team, mostly comprising 11-year-olds, so I must have been good. But the best part is that the tournament was held on my school ground and we won it, so that was extremely encouraging,” explained Rasquinha, who represented India from 1999 to 2008 after which he retired rather pre-maturely to pursue a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) at the prestigious Indian School of Business (ISB) in Hyderabad.

The St Stanislaus ground went on to become a happy hunting ground for Rasquinha. “I played three editions of the MSSA U-12 tournament at that ground, as a 9, 10 and finally, an 11-year-old, and we won it each time. I’m sure that’s a rare achievement. Also, I remember, each of those finals were played at around 4pm, and since our school left at 3:45pm, all the students would gather near the sidelines and cheer us. It felt wonderful to see your entire school cheering for you. This ground has truly made me feel extra special,” concluded Rasquinha, who is currently Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Olympic Gold Quest, an organisation that helps identify, nurture and sponsor talented Indian sportspersons across the country.

A few years ago, the grass surface at the St Stanislaus ground was replaced by artificial turf, in keeping with the demands of the modern game, but Viren remains “eternally grateful” to this once well-known and well-levelled hockey pitch that equipped him for the highly competitive turf wars later in his international career. 

2004
Year he played at the Olympics