Balwant Singh Sagwal (d. 14 November 2010), popularly known as Ballu,[1] was an Indian volleyball player, considered a star of the national volleyball team.[2]
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Balwant Singh Sagwal was born in the village of Kaul in the Kaithal district of Haryana.
Sagwal was a tall, ungainly youth. His height was 6 feet 6 inches (1.98 m) with correspondingly big hands and feet. He was from a modest background and joined the Border Security Force (BSF) in Jalandhar, Punjab, which had a reputation for producing quality volleyball players at the time.[3]
In the mid 1960s and into 1970s, he was responsible for helping Punjab achieve national success,[4] and he was awarded the country's top sporting honor, the Arjuna Award,[5] in volleyball in 1972 for his excellent sportsmanship and contribution to the national team. Sagwal played for India in Asian Games of 1970, 1974, and 1978.[5] He also played test matches for India in 1970, 1978 and 1980.
The first National Volleyball Championship in which Sagwal took part was that of 1965 and he continued to play in the Nationals till 1988. Between 1968 and 1981, Punjab won National Championships 10 times largely due to the performance of Sagwal. Sagwal participated in the All India Police Games from 1966 to 1990 representing Punjab Police and BSF.
Sagwal ran a volleyball academy in Kaul, and a stadium was named after him. He died in November 2010.[5]