Legendary hockey player Abdul Malek Chunnu, who won the national sports award in 2004, passed away at his Armanitola residence in Dhaka on
Friday morning due to multiple diseases. He was 55.
Chunnu, a forward renowned for his splendid performance at the Asia Cup hockey in 1985 in Dhaka, had been suffering from kidney and diabetic diseases for a long time before he breathed his last, was born in Dhaka on January 1, 1958.
He left behind his wife, three sons and a host of well-wishers to mourn his death. His second son Abdus Sazzad John also represented the national team as a hockey player.
Chunnu, who played in the right-out position, started his hockey career in 1974 with Mahuttuli Sporting Club. Later he played for Abahani, Mohammedan SC and Sadharan Bima. He also played in the first division football league for Azad Sporting Club from 1979 to 1981.
In 1977, he represented Bangladesh for the first time as a member of the junior national team in the Malaysia Asia Cup. Then he took part in the eighth Asian Games in Thailand in 1978. He led the Bangladesh national hockey team at the 1982 Asian Games in New Delhi. In the 1986 Asian Games in South Korea he played for the last time.
Before his death, Chunnu was working in the National Sports Council as a hockey coach. He also coached the national team several times.
His namaz-e-janaza was held in the Mahuttuli mosque after the Jumma prayers and he was buried at the Azimpur graveyard.
-With New Age input
