Let us accept the truth

[The Dark Horse]

Let us not be afraid to face the truth. We are a one-sport nation, writes Nirmal Shekar As a professional sportswriter, I am sick of hearing the question over and over and over again. I find it almost nauseating. If there are tens of millions posing the question, then, over the four decades that I have spent in the profession, there have been tens of hundreds of answers, from serious commentators and sports critics down to lay persons. Why does a nation of over 1.2 billion people end up with just a few pieces of bronze and silver every four years in the most celebrated event in sport? Psychologists often talk of something called paralysis through analysis in life. When you think too much about something and ratchet up your anxiety levels, the performance is bound to dip. When it comes to this clichñÅ question, this very much seems to be true. CONFUSED While, some might believe they have the right answers/solutions, we have been left in such a confused state that there is no single ÃÓight prescription for the malaise. But if you chose to leave aside all serious analysis as to why Indian track and field athletes, swimmers, gymnasts, hockey players and other Olympic participants fail to live up to our and sometimes their own expectations and came around to zeroing in on a rather reductionist, and surely controversial, viewpoint, the answer might be simple. For, this question raises its ugly head for only about two weeks every four years. The rest of the time for three full years and eleven and a half months we are obsessed with, worship and shamelessly pay obeisance to a sport played with any degree of seriousness by eight-and-a-half nations. Let us, then, accept the truth. We are a one-sport nation. And even a toddler would tell you what that sport is. So, let us forget the London Games. In a few weeks, the Indian cricket team will be playing in the Twenty20 World Cup in Sri Lanka where the conditions will suit Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his boys to the hilt. ANOTHER WILD PARADE LetÃÔ look forward to another wild parade through the streets of Mumbai with the boys peacocking from an open-top bus. LetÃÔ unabashedly hail their heroics, throw fresh flowers and encomiums at them even as my fellow professionals try to pull out every adjective in their vocabulary to celebrate the great achievement. Meanwhile, Mary Kom would probably be running from pillar to post to find a cooking gas cylinder in Manipur, Yogeshwar Dutt would be walking to the nearest tea stall in his hometown, unmolested, his stellar achievement long forgotten. The peerless Viswanathan AnandÃÔ fifth world chess title would be a distant memory and he would be preparing for yet another tournament that nobody cares about even as Jeev Milka Singh tees off somewhere that nobody has heard of. Birdie and eagles©Øell, we havenÃÕ been to a bird sanctuary in a while; should make it a point to visit one. ThatÃÔ who we are. That is what we are. That is India. Say all you want about how mediocre Indian sportspersons cricket is advisedly left out of the description of sport because it is no longer a sport and hasnÃÕ been in quite a while as it is on a par with things religious are but we simply do no care for them for the most part. WE LET THEM DOWN And when the Olympics come around, we are saddened, angry and aghast that we are not able to revel in reflected glory. We are ashamed that countries with one millionth of our population pick up gold medals. These guys have done us in, we say. We believed so much in them and they have let us down. But the truth is, it is we who let them down. For, we donÃÕ care about them for three years and eleven-and-a-half months. We donÃÕ care about their impecunious circumstances, their heroic struggles, their fight against-the-odds and battles with cynical, self-serving sports administrators heading often corrupt sports bodies. Instead, we spend sleepless nights over whether Chennai Super Kings would make it to the final of the IPL or whether a mediocre also-ran cricketer really did take recreational drugs at some rave party in Mumbai; or whether Yuvraj Singh is dating the latest Miss India or some other starlet whose only claim to fame is that she was seen with a cricketing superstar on a night out. My dear readers, let us get real. We have failed the Koms and the Yogeshwars and the rest as much as we seem to believe that many Indian athletes have failed us. They donÃÕ owe us as much as we owe them. We need to follow their careers, cheer them from grassroots up, care about how they are treated by the administrators, worry about how they are ignored by the big corporate giants who would readily part with $10m for a 15-second TV ad campaign featuring a Sachin Tendulkar or a Gautam Gambhir. But we donÃÕ. We simply donÃÕ give a damn most of the time and then bemoan their lack of success at the Olympics once every four years. Believe me, it is not easy being an Indian and trying to achieve world-class feats in most sports, barring cricket, with its superb infrastructure public and corporate support and unmatched financial clout. This is not to belittle what the Gavaskars, Kapils and the Tendulkars have achieved. But, tell me this: why is nobody canvassing for a seat in the upper house for Anand, why isnÃÕ anyone talking about a Bharat Ratna for the genius of the 64-square game? The world chess champion is an Indian chess, my friend, chess, where the grey matter matters more than in any other game and that should make us prouder than any other achievement by any Indian sportsman or team. But forget it. By the way, when is IndiaÃÔ first match in the Twenty20 World Cup in Sri Lanka? I bet Harbhajan will be back with a bang. What a fighter the man is! Nothing reflects our unity in diversity and is a greater tribute to it than our national obsession with cricket. Sorry Mary, we forgot about your gas cylinder and the constant problems with power failures in your little house. But that is who we are.

http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/columns/nirmal_shekar/article3758296.ece?homepage=true

[Tiger80]

WE LET THEM DOWN And when the Olympics come around, we are saddened, angry and aghast that we are not able to revel in reflected glory. We are ashamed that countries with one millionth of our population pick up gold medals. These guys have done us in, we say. We believed so much in them and they have let us down. But the truth is, it is we who let them down. For, we donÃÕ care about them for three years and eleven-and-a-half months. We donÃÕ care about their impecunious circumstances, their heroic struggles, their fight against-the-odds and battles with cynical, self-serving sports administrators heading often corrupt sports bodies. Instead, we spend sleepless nights over whether Chennai Super Kings would make it to the final of the IPL or whether a mediocre also-ran cricketer really did take recreational drugs at some rave party in Mumbai; or whether Yuvraj Singh is dating the latest Miss India or some other starlet whose only claim to fame is that she was seen with a cricketing superstar on a night out. My dear readers, let us get real. We have failed the Koms and the Yogeshwars and the rest as much as we seem to believe that many Indian athletes have failed us. They donÃÕ owe us as much as we owe them. We need to follow their careers, cheer them from grassroots up, care about how they are treated by the administrators, worry about how they are ignored by the big corporate giants who would readily part with $10m for a 15-second TV ad campaign featuring a Sachin Tendulkar or a Gautam Gambhir. But we donÃÕ. We simply donÃÕ give a damn most of the time and then bemoan their lack of success at the Olympics

Another cricket jealous person.90% of Olympic sports are not spectator friendly,I am sure Soon even English will be busy with their EPL and Americans with their NBA etc etc.People will watch the sports which they enjoy and not because because some kom or Dutt is participating in it.If the guy care about so much other sportspersons he is free to watch a Chess match or a boxing match or any other sports but let people decide which sport they want to watch

[Crookbond]

^ I agree to this! How many countries have more than 2 or 3 sports which catch their imagination? Brazil -- Football England - Football, Rugby, Cricket (negligible) USA -- Any sh!t with some spice these people can watch China - Table Tennis, Badminton Each country will have it's own marquee sport and for India it is cricket. I doubt anyone disagrees to that. But, I will watch if Parupalli Kashyap is participating in the All England Badminton Championships just like I watched P Gopichand win it in 2001. And :facepalm: for the author for comparing individual sports to team sports!

[Prakat]

Yup. What I said here...

And we as supporters are not entitled to anything. She doesn't owe us or the country a gold. We've done nothing for sportspeople like her' date=' we've given them nothing and invested nothing in them. I don't see how anyone can sit and act like they are the ones who have failed us.[/quote']

[punjabi_khota]

Who is saying the sportspersons have failed us ? Most people blame govt., etc and move on. :boring:

[coffee_rules]

Olympic medal is not only about excellence in a sport, it is how much money a govt/sporting authority is willing to spend to get a medal. The author thinks that medals are won by spectator following of the sport. So let's all clamor to the stadium where the next T&F event happens in Madurai, TN.

[Prakat]

Who is saying the sportspersons have failed us ? Most people blame govt., etc and move on. :boring:

You will find a lot of examples if you follow my post. And this sense of entitlement is there in real life as well. The impression one gets is that we've been burdened with these under-achiever slacker athletes. Why can't we catch a break for once and have an athlete like Phelps or Bolt representing us on the world stage.

[punjabi_khota]

Most olympic sports are a bummer to watch regularly, so you can't really expect the crowd to get behind a wrestler () or archer. It is not like dudes like Phelps are on TV in US all day. Hell the only time Phelps made news in last 4 years was when he was caught with a bong (not the rosgolla ones..). There is no point faking enthusiasm for sports that are not much of a spectator sport , it won't last.

[Prakat]

Yeah, no exhortation to get behind them out of some sense of duty. But just don't pillory them for not reaching our expectations. Let's face it, our showing at this stage sticks out like a sore thumb in the general story we like to tell ourselves about India. We end up behaving like a child who has discovered for the first time that his dad will never be able to buy an airplane. Also, I think what is spectator sport is very relative and is rooted is historical context. Cricket is notoriously spectator unfriendly. We love it for our own reasons but a half hour shot of a run of the mill test cricket match would fit the description of what constitutes boring viewing in roughly 90% of countries. We find it fascinating because we are steeped in the nitty gritties of it all. Its not hard to imagine that if we had such in depth knowledge of badminton or wrestling we would find ourselves as engrossed in it.

[maniac]

Most olympic sports are a bummer to watch regularly, so you can't really expect the crowd to get behind a wrestler () or archer. It is not like dudes like Phelps are on TV in US all day. Hell the only time Phelps made news in last 4 years was when he was caught with a bong (not the rosgolla ones..). There is no point faking enthusiasm for sports that are not much of a spectator sport , it won't last.

:haha:

[India-KXIP fan]

True every other big nation is good in multiple sports. With India it was hockey then everyone lost interest and Cricket gained alot more popularity and now India's good at cricket. India should at least become the best in 2 sports and not be so crap in the Olympics and start getting around 5 golds, top 15 finishes.

[maniac]

Don't want to sound insensitive here and this is a sad truth how the marketing-machine works too.....the only face we will see over and over again will be Saina....truth be told she is the most marketable among all the winners....which may result in badmintion catch popularity atleast among middle-class girls now.... Sushil Kumar will be another guy who might get a lot of endorsements for technically being India's greatest individual olympian. but wrestling being wrestling unless it is fake WWE won't be relevant till the next olympics....i bet kids will name Great khali as their favouraite wrestler and not Sushil Kumar no matter how much press he gets. Now this is a sad truth but that's the way things work

[maniac]

^As far as other winners go....they will be forgotten....how popular is K.DJadhav or Karanam Malleswari or how many endorsements have they got?

[yoda]

Like PK said no one cheers for Olympic athletes outside of the Olympics even in countries like the US. The drive has to come from within. Many of the US Gold medal winners make it on the world stage as teens, some of them still in High school. Ofc they all will get encouraged by the Parents, Gym teachers, School coaches, etc, but the average viewer doesn't even know who these people are till they see them in an Olympic game.

[Lurker]

Another cricket jealous person.90% of Olympic sports are not spectator friendly' date=I am sure Soon even English will be busy with their EPL and Americans with their NBA etc etc.People will watch the sports which they enjoy and not because because some kom or Dutt is participating in it.If the guy care about so much other sportspersons he is free to watch a Chess match or a boxing match or any other sports but let people decide which sport they want to watch

What are you talking about 90% of Olympic sports are not spectator friendly? Atleast paraphrase such statements with a - FOR ME - as in - 90% of Olympics sports are not spectator friendly FOR ME. And you really should research on what "90%" of the modern world thinks of cricket by the way.

Brazil -- Football England - Football, Rugby, Cricket (negligible) USA -- Any sh!t with some spice these people can watch China - Table Tennis, Badminton Each country will have it's own marquee sport and for India it is cricket. I doubt anyone disagrees to that. But, I will watch if Parupalli Kashyap is participating in the All England Badminton Championships just like I watched P Gopichand win it in 2001. And for the author for comparing individual sports to team sports!

Brazil has many other sports that are extremely popular. Volleyball for example. England has a strong following in Formula 1 (more than cricket), snooker/billiards are followed pretty regularly. Cycling and many other olympic games has a good strong following too. China is fast becoming the largest market for every game from NBA to Football (both soccer and NFL), even baseball. To say TT and badminton is all they watch is ridiculous. Only in India do we watch ONLY cricket. Heck we were watching cricket even when we were world champions in hockey.

[velu]

Almost all the sports in Olympics are for GAYS only :phehehe:

[punjabi_khota]

^Who the **** cares about 90% of the world thinks ? Does the US care about what 90% of the world think about American football or baseball ? We like watching cricket, and that is it. If something else catches the fancy, people will watch it too. I will take the so-called-fake 'We -are-MAN-U' supporters in Mumbai over the 'We should watch hockey since it is our national game' crap, any day of the week. Most people (and it is clear from viewership statistics) would rather watch paint dry on their cricket bat than watch (outside of olympics) swimming, declathon, wrestling, volleball, archery, and such. Most of it mind numbingly boring.

[straighttalk]

Almost all the sports in Olympics are for GAYS only :phehehe:

care to say that to his face...

[Lurker]

^Who the **** cares about 90% of the world thinks ? Does the US care about what 90% of the world think about American football or baseball ? We like watching cricket, and that is it. If something else catches the fancy, people will watch it too.

You are getting defensive because you suck. End of story. Dont compare yourself with US. Yes the world may not think of NFL, or US of world football. But guess what, US is still far and away the worlds sporting powerhouse. Check the latest medal list too if you dont beleive me. It is one thing for US to follow what it does, or for a US sport to be not followed by others. It is completely retarded for us to make the same comparison. I am sure your logic should also extend to Bangladesh and Pakistan to save their sorry ar$es too :giggle:

I will take the so-called-fake 'We -are-MAN-U' supporters in Mumbai over the 'We should watch hockey since it is our national game' crap, any day of the week.

Sure. Because that is what Nirmal Shekhar was hinting at. Kudos for being intelligent enough to understand the article.

Most people (and it is clear from viewership statistics) would rather watch paint dry on their cricket bat than watch (outside of olympics) swimming, declathon, wrestling, volleball, archery, and such. Most of it mind numbingly boring.

lol half of the games you mentioned is loved by most people, Indians and non-Indians, that I know of. Statistics what statistics? Swimming will be watched by more people than world cricket finals :winky: volleyball is an awesome game to watch, same with wrestling. Not getting personal here but maybe some of this is down to your exposure to games?? Anybody who has ever played volleyball loves watching it. Simple, fast paced and gets done in 2 hours. None of the 5 day cricket Test mumbo jumbo..and I am a Test cricket lover. That article seems to be hinted right at folks like you.....:winky:

[coffee_rules]

^ The article seems to imply that watching sport equals medals in olympics. It's not true.