Ranchi: Former national footballer and able sports administrator, Rashid Khan, died in a car crash on Tuesday midnight at Itaribarhi, Bhandariya in Lohardaga, 80km from here.
Khan, in his mid-60s, was driving from Ranchi back home to Lohardaga, when his car collided with an unidentified truck. His wife Jasrun, who was in the car with him and was critically injured, died undergoing treatment at RIMS on Wednesday morning.
The accident sent shockwaves in the sporting fraternity of the state. An affable workaholic, Khan held several portfolios in different sports bodies. He was secretary of Lohardaga football association, treasurer in Jharkhand Football Association, vice-president in Jharkhand Athletics Association and Jharkhand Olympic Association, secretary of Lohardaga Olympic Association, among others.
"He was truly the one-man face of Lohardaga sports," Shivendu Dubey, treasurer of Jharkhand Olympic Association. "Though he was primarily a footballer who loved to teach budding players tricks of the game, he did not restrict his enthusiasm to one game. Be it athletics, volleyball, football, or any other game, which is played in Lohardaga, he personally used to take keen interest to promote them and ensured sporting activities were held regularly," he added.
Prabhakar Verma, an official of Jharkhand Athletics Association, credited Khan with founding the Lohardaga district unit of the state Olympic association.
"I can't recall the year, but Khan fought to set up a district unit, brought all associations together for welfare of all sports disciplines. Though there is much to be done, Khan tried streamlining Lohardaga's sporting activities," he said.
Ashish Bose, a football coach in Ranchi and member of Jharkhand Football Association, said they lost a guardian on and off the field.
"His sportsman spirit was way beyond a specific discipline. Be it past players, administrators or the current breed of players, everyone regarded him as father figure. Also, he was a clean man and steered clear of controversies in his whole career," he said.
