Major General Dr. C. K. Lakshmanan – India’s First Malayali Olympic Athlete and Healer in Uniform

Maj Gen Dr CK Lakshmanan
5 April 1898 - 03 October 1970

This Sunday 5th October 2025, we pause to honour Major General Dr. C. K. Lakshmanan - two days after his death anniversary, which fell on Friday, 3rd October. This timing is intentional. Some legacies deserve not the rush of ritual, but the grace of reflection. Fifty-five years have passed since he departed, and yet his stride still echoes in stadiums, in service, and in the soul of Kerala.

Born on 5 April 1898, in the coastal embrace of Payyambalam, Kannur, Lakshmanan belonged to the sprawling Cheruvari Kottieth family - more than three hundred strong. They were not just kin, but a sporting fraternity, fielding teams in football, hockey, and cricket with discipline and flair. Athletics, for Lakshmanan, was not a pursuit, it was inheritance.

From this lineage came stories both poignant and proud. Ravi Bhaskar, a descendant, recalls Choyi Butler, his great-grandfather, who ran Choyi’s Hotel in Kannur. The name lives on today as Choice Hotel, but the legacy runs far deeper. Choyi married both an Indian woman and a white lady, fathering children through both unions. For years, the white side of the family stood outside the ancestral home, until time softened the walls. From that union emerged Olympians, generals, and the founding spirit behind General Raj’s School in Delhi.
 

Scholar, Sportsman, Surgeon

Lakshmanan’s early education began at Kannur Municipal School, followed by Madras Christian College, and then Madras Medical College, where he earned his professional qualification. But his heart beat to the rhythm of sport. He played tennis with elegance, cricket with fire, and pursued athletics with devotion.
 
As a googly bowler in cricket, he represented the Indians in Madras, and legend has it that he bowled three maiden overs to Jack Hobbs, the English master, during a tour arranged by the Maharaja of Vizianagaram. That duel was not just sport, it was a statement.
 
By the early 1920s, Lakshmanan had emerged as one of India’s finest hurdlers. At the inaugural All-India National Athletic Meet in Delhi (1924), he won gold in the 120-yard hurdles, sealing his place in history. That victory earned him a spot in India’s eight-member team for the Paris Olympics.
 
The 1924 Games hosted 44 nations, with 3,089 athletes competing across 23 disciplines. Lakshmanan lined up for the 110-metre hurdles, clocking 16.4 seconds in the heats. He did not advance, but his presence was profound. He became the first Malayali to compete at the Olympics, carrying Kerala’s sporting spirit into the global arena. India returned without medals, but with pride. In a colonised nation, participation itself was a declaration of identity.
 

From Track to Healing

Lakshmanan soon traded his spikes for a stethoscope. After completing higher studies in England, he returned to serve the Indian Army, rising to the rank of Major General. He later became Director General of Health Services under the British regime. In May 1956, he was elected to the executive board of the World Health Organisation, a role shaped by his close bond with Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. From July 1958 to April 1969, he served as Secretary General of the Indian Red Cross and Executive Officer of the International Red Cross. His service was not a chapter, it was a legacy.
 

Family and Final Years

He married Sarojini, daughter of Justice Krishnan of the Madras High Court. Together, they raised Sreelatha Khatri, Ram, and Jaikrishnan, and lived in Delhi. On 3 October 1970, he passed away at the age of 72.
 

Legacy in Bronze and Memory

In 2008, a half-figure statue of Lakshmanan was unveiled opposite Jawahar Stadium, Kannur, by Olympian footballer O. Chandrashekhar. His daughter, Sreelatha Khatri, and other kin attended. The tribute was organised by the Football Front Free Coaching Centre - not as nostalgia, but as continuity. Today, we do not mourn. We remember. Lakshmanan’s name lives not in silence, but in motion: in hurdles cleared, in cricketing duels, in the healing of bodies, and in the torch he lit for Kerala. His life was a confluence of play and prayer, sport and service. In this tribute, offered two days after his death anniversary, we honour not just a man, but a movement.
 

References

1. Wikipedia - Cheruvari Lakshmanan/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheruvari_Lakshmanan
2. Olympedia – Cheruvari Lakshmanan/ https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/71393
3. Sportskeeda – C. K. Lakshmanan: Kerala’s First Olympian/ https://www.sportskeeda.com/sports/ck-lakshmanan-kerala-s-first-olympian
4. ESPNcricinfo – C. K. Lakshmanan: First-class cricket career/ https://thebridge.in/cricket/indian-olympians-who-played-first-class-cricket/
5. Kerala Olympic Association – Olympians from Kerala/ https://keralaolympic.org/olympyans.php
6. Geni.com – Major General Dr. C. K. Lakshmanan/ https://www.geni.com/people/Major-General-CK-Lakshmanan-FRCP/6000000003104938679
7. Interviews with relatives and locals

Coming up next: SUNDAY FIELD & FLAME – 12 October 2025: Kerala Sports Day: From G.V. Raja’s Vision to Science and the Futures