Obituary: Hockey to sports med, Dr Vece Paes was multifaceted

CHENNAI: He reached the pinnacle of sport at the 1972 Munich Olympics, returning home with a bronze medal for India in hockey. Yet Dr Vece Paes was far more than a hockey player.

A pioneer in sports medicine, his career and stories bear testimony to his versatility. He also played hockey for Kolkata giants Mohun Bagan and Mohammedan Sporting, served as president of the Indian Rugby Football Union from 1996 to 2002, and worked as a medical consultant with the Asian Cricket Council and the Board of Control for Cricket in India.

Remembered by his contemporaries as a soft-spoken and dependable presence in every situation, Dr Paes breathed his last aged 80 at a private hospital in Kolkata on Thursday.

Born in 1945, he studied at La Martiniere College in Lucknow before pursuing a career in medicine at Presidency College, Kolkata.

His talent in hockey earned him a place on the national team while still a student, and he made his debut at the Hamburg International in 1966.

“From 1971 to 1975, we travelled together for many tournaments. I attended the 1972 Munich Olympics camp with him, where he was in the main squad and I was a standby,” recalled Vasudevan Baskaran, former India captain and Olympic gold medallist, while speaking to DT Next.

While he had achieved the ultimate sporting honour as a player, his contributions as a doctor left a lasting mark on Indian sport.

Baskaran recounted an incident during his tenure as coach at the 1994–95 Junior World Cup. “I travelled with the junior team to Singapore and Malaysia and saw they had doctors with diplomas in sports medicine. I was pushing for the same back home, insisting we needed doctors with sports science knowledge rather than just medical practitioners. Dr Vece was the only one who stood by me at that time,” he said.

• Dr Vece (6 M) at the 1972 Olympics medical team

Baskaran credited him with initiating a crucial shift in Indian sport by ensuring that teams travelled with sports medicine specialists during tournaments.

Former India cricketer WV Raman, who worked alongside Dr Paes at the Cricket Association of Bengal in 2001–02, remembered him as a man of deep empathy.

“He knew the struggles players faced when injured, because he had been one himself. Having raised his son Leander Paes, an Olympic medallist, he also understood the challenges parents encounter in nurturing a sportsperson. Many came to him for advice. He was passionate about sport, and his passing is a great loss to the entire sporting fraternity,” Raman said.

Baskaran also recalled how Dr Paes kept his clinic open for players without requiring appointments, treating them free of charge after 8.00 pm.

On Thursday, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) issued a condolence statement, noting that Dr Paes had served as chairman of the AIFF Medical Commission from 2003 to 2006 and later as chairman of the AIFF Medical Committee from 2017 to 2020.

Condolences poured in for the Olympian. "Very saddened by the passing of former Indian player and Olympic bronze medallist,” FIH president Tayyab Ikram said.

• Dr Vece, V Baskaran, MM Sommaya with Leslie Claudius at Indian Selection Commitee 1985

"Deeply saddened by the passing of Dr Vece Paes,” said four-time Olympian Dhanraj Pillay, saying he has been a great motivator for athletes like him.