One of the most familiar figures among racing journalist fraternity in India Tom Krish passed away mid-air on Monday when he was en route to Chennai from Chicago for his annual vacation. Tom Krish wrote extensively on international horse racing in Indian racing websites. He was one of the most extensively travelled journalists and he had covered every major racing event in the world barring the Melbourne Cup. He was a frequent traveller. He was also instrumental in Suraj Narredu getting an opportunity to ride in the USA a few years ago.

The distinguishing trait about Tom was that he was rarely critical in his articles and always looked at the positive side. He had many friends among international jockeys. Despite failing health, he loved to travel and would make it point to attend the racing events all over the world. He also covered the Epsom Derby on many occasions.

Tom specialized in harness racing back home. He was a big name in this field and gave selections with great success in Chicago Sun-Times. Though he wanted to quit because of his poor health, the newspaper editor insisted that he continue because of the following he had. His granddaughter readily helped him in preparing the detailed card.

I was recently in the USA and was his guest in Chicago for a few days during which time I got a feel of Harness Racing. He also took me to Arlington Race Course which was hosting the biggest race of its calendar namely the Arlington Million which is a race open for international horses. India`s Holding Court was an entry for this race though he did not run in that race due to quarantine related delay. He was a transformed man at the race course. Racing gave him adrenalin and perhaps it was his passion for racing that kept him going. He spent time following racing at multiple racing centres in the USA. Because of his frail health, he could barely sleep, and the racing action helped him immensely. He had told me that the doctors had assured him that they can keep him alive for another 15 years though they can`t guarantee the quality of his life. The last mail I got from him was the detailed programme of the Breeders Cup weekend racing in the first week of November.

Tom had a big following in India. Every Invitation Cup saw the congregation of his admirers to share their enjoyment of racing. Tom would make it a point to call a top personality from racing to interact with the racing enthusiasts. These sessions were a big hit and every year the number of participants kept increasing. Tom was ever willing to help and was a wonderful host.

Tom`s father Seshadri was an Indian Civil Services Officer and he was a racehorse owner at Chennai. Perhaps it is because of his father that Tom came into racing. He was an excellent speaker and he would make use of his vacation in India to give lectures on American politics at various fora. He was a brilliant speaker and was gifted in this aspect. He was very active during the Press Meets and this trait helped the fellow journalists because of the inciteful information that the questions would elicit from the professionals. He had told me that he had got the invitation to attend this month`s Breeders Cup meet and his brief was to be an active participant in the Press Meets. I am not sure whether he made it to the Breeders Cup.

He contributed articles on international racing for several years for indiarace.com when I was part of it. And later, he was also a contributor to our website as well. The exposure he got while writing for our websites got him wide recognition in Indian racing circles. He was also a prolific contributor for the RWITC website. The turf clubs also made use of his services during the premier events to preview the major events. His style was appealing if only because it had a personal touch and the many personal anecdotes enhanced the value of his stories. He made it a point to keep in touch with the international jockeys who rode regularly in India and gave updates about their performance.

Tom`s passing away is a great personal loss for me. Apart from being a good friend, he was a kind-hearted soul who always spoke about others in glowing terms. He was an excellent host and would go an extra mile to make his guests feel comfortable. As someone put it succinctly, ``the life of the dead is placed in the memory of the living.`` RIP Tom.