Dr Vece Paes, Olympic medallist, sports medicine pioneer and father to Leander Paes, passes away

Dr Vece Paes, Olympic hockey bronze medallist and an expert in sports medicine, passed away on Thursday. He was 80, and reports suggest he succumbed to age-related medical issues. Vece Paes was also a father and mentor to tennis legend Leander Paes.

The late Dr Paes won a Bronze medal at the 1972 Olympics with the Indian Men's Hockey team, while Leander Paes won a Bronze medal at the 1996 Olympics in the Men's Singles.

Vece Peas, father to Leander Paes, dies at 80

Vece Paes earned widespread acclaim for his work in the sports medicine. He worked as a physiotherapist for several top sports organisations in the country, including the Indian cricket team, the Indian Davis Cup team, and others. Dr Paes also worked with the Asian Cricket Council and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), where he took charge of anti-doping education programmes.

Vece Paes was born in 1945 in Goa and studied medicine in Kolkata; he was a midfielder in the Indian hockey team. Paes also played divisional cricket, football and rugby. He headed the Indian Rugby Football Union between 1996 and 2002.

Leander Paes once said how polishing his father’s Olympic bronze medal every day inspired him to do pursue sports. Leander acknowledged that his family taught him the discipline of being a sportsperson.

“I want to bow my head and show gratitude to my parents and sister because I learnt the responsibility of being an Olympic athlete, the responsibility of playing for a billion people and motivating them,” Leander said in a 2020 interview.

“I love my dad and want to thank him and my mother for being such phenomenal parents."

For more updates, join/follow our WhatsApp, Telegram and YouTube channels.