Narayan Dharam Singh (born December 25, 1936), was the 17th Chief Minister of Karnataka state in India and a former Lok Sabha member. He was sworn into office on May 28, 2004, and left office on February 3, 2006. He represents Congress (I) in the state. The coalition government formed by the Congress (I) with the help of Janata Dal (Secular) came to an end in February, 2006 when H. D. Kumaraswamy engineered the downfall of the Dharam Singh administration.

Dharam Singh (January 19, 1919 - December 5, 2001) was an Indian field hockey player who was the oldest Olympic gold medalist in history when he was 45 years old as a member of the winning Indian side in 1964.

Born in Gandiwind in the Amritsar district, Dharam Singh had a passion for hockey since childhood. Running barefoot with a stick and ball on the dusty village streets, he displayed strong motivation to don national colours. As a school student at Sarhali, the young Dharam Singh played a key role in his school team’s triumph in the prestigious Divali Trophy for three years. When Dharam Singh shifted to Gujranwala school from where he passed his matric the trophy followed him.

In 1941, Dharam Singh joined Khalsa College, Amritsar, and later represented Panjab University. In 1945, the Nawab of Manavadar invited Dharam Singh to join his newly established team where again he played a key role the outfit’s memorable triumphs.

In 1948, Dharam Singh was supposed to attend the national camp but his brother’s murder came as a big shock and he had to abandon his plans. Finally, he made his debut in the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, and playing alongside players like Randhir Singh Gentle, Dharam Singh’s role in the historic gold-medal victory came in for special mention in hockey circles.

In 1964, Dharam Singh donned the coach’s mantle and steered India to another memorable title win in the Tokyo Olympics. He remained active as a coach, handling national assignments for various Asian meets. He had joined the Punjab Sports Department in 1961 from where he retired as senior coach in 1978.

Dharam Singh suffered brain haemorrhage after a fall in his bathroom in December 2001, and was admitted to the PGI where his condition remained critical. He showed no signs of recovery until his death that same month in Chandigarh.