Born in Uttarakhand, honed by the Army, and excelling for India at the international stage,
Hari Dutt Kapri is today's addition to the
Hoopistani Indian Basketball Hall of Fame. The former national team captain enjoyed a storied basketball playing career that culminated with him joining the ranks of Indian basketball's Arjuna Award winners.
Kapri was born in 1942 in Chiriyakhan of the Pithoragarh district in Uttarakhand, a village in the Western Himalaya. But he only discovered the game of basketball when he joined the Army as a recruit in the Bengal Engineering Group. He eventually began to play a major role in the Services basketball team, where he was named captain in 1963 and led them to several National Championship gold medals in the 15-year stretch that followed.
Kapri was eventually also made captain of India's National Men's basketball team. One of the highlights of his career was captaining Team India to a best-ever fourth-place finish at the FIBA Asia Cup (formerly FIBA ABC) in Bangkok in 1975. He played a big role in many more international tournaments in India across the continent in the 1960s and 70s.
Kapri was rewarded the Arjuna Award, and after retirement, worked for the Uttarakhand Police and continued to play a role as a basketball coach and trainer for youth from the region.
Click here for more of the Indian Basketball Hall of Fame.
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