The Paris Olympics just ended with India securing six medals — one silver and five bronze — to place 71st in the medals tally. The country’s performance led to many questions about the need for a sporting culture. Was India’s performance in the Olympics an outcome of its lack of sporting culture outside cricket? What more can be done? A.B. Subbaiah and Tejaswin Shankar discuss the question in a conversation moderated by Uthra Ganesan. Edited excerpts:
How would you compare India’s performance with that of other countries?
Tejaswin Shankar: There was greater visibility of our athletes. I don’t know if that is because the broadcasters decided to cover Indian sports more compared to previous years or because we were able to send more athletes to the Games this time. But there were more people in blue jerseys and that was good to see. In some events, it was really heartening to see some of our performances. It was sad that we lost a medal by a whisker here and there. In some other events, India’s performance was really upsetting.
Dr. Subbaiah, many people say cricket has grown exponentially, while other sports have not grown to that extent in India. What do you think? We are not seeing good enough results in other sports.
A.B. Subbaiah: Yes, other Indian sports didn’t make the changes that were required of them faster. In 1996 (Atlanta), Leander Paes got the first individual bronze medal after 1952 at the Olympics. That was big. Nowadays, we win 7-8 Olympic medals across different sports. This is happening because we began identifying younger talent and giving them support. It is not enough at all, but it is happening. The infrastructure and sports science are much better than it was during our time.
Tejaswin Shankar: As you said, results matter. Winning a medal is the goal and all our efforts are made towards that. From a sporting ecosystem standpoint, I feel we have come a long way since the London Olympics (2012) or the Rio Olympics (2016). There is a long way to go, however. People say, see how the U.S. has so many medallists, look at their GDP, their population, etc. But we also have to realise that they (the U.S.) have had more than 100 years (of sporting history). During Adolf Hitler’s time, (American athlete) Jesse Owens won many Olympic gold medals. So, history also matters. On the other hand, India has been funding many sports well only in the last 8-10 years.
It is good to be critical about our performance because it fuels the hunger in our athletes and also pushes administrators to do better. After the London Olympics, everyone was happy that we won 6 medals. This time, we won 6 again, but people have been very critical. That is a sign of progress. At the same time, we need to cut ourselves some slack and not compare ourselves to China or the U.S. We will get there with time.
Do you agree that we are a one-sport nation that wakes up occasionally and demands results in other sports?
Tejaswin Shankar: If we were just a one-sport nation, nobody would even care about or fund other sports apart from cricket. So, clearly we are not. But yes, cricket gets a lot more attention, possibly because people like it. Even in the U.S., track and field does not get the same attention as, say, the NBA (National Basketball Association).
There is a lack of general awareness about other sports. For example, badminton is probably one of the most famous sports after cricket in India. People talk a lot about it. We have had heroes like P.V. Sindhu, Parupalli Kashyap, and Saina Nehwal. But people still don’t know the basic rules of the game. When they start demanding results, it becomes challenging for the athletes because they are not used to such criticism or even such attention (when the Games are on). When they play at the Games and finish fourth, people are surprised and go through their whole biodata. But more people need to get interested and involved in these sports outside of the Olympics cycle.
A.B. Subbaiah: We are not a sporting nation. We have a huge population and many youngsters; some of them can be urged to take up sports. If we support them by providing good infrastructure, finances, nutrition, and scientific support staff, we can be at least in the top six or seven nations. Khelo India is a good concept because we have games at the grassroots level, and we can identify people who are really talented. We need to continue to nurture them for at least a few more years. The government programme is where you need not worry about funding, but it is important for the system to be run professionally. Also, players can be produced through private academies.
This time, we could have another four or five medals if we had good support staff.
Should we build a culture where people follow sports throughout the year?
Tejaswin Shankar: If you love sports, it shouldn’t be because of the Olympics results or the star athletes competing in a sport. Take the example of the U.S. The reason they love sports is not because they have a Michael Phelps, but because when children in Class 8 or 9 play football matches, the whole city comes to watch. A Michael Phelps or LeBron James is not running around the field, only a bunch of children are. The passion for the sport supersedes the passion to watch a particular athlete.
In India, when more and more parents and school curricula allow children to play and pursue sports, we will have more fun as a general population, there will be a higher chance of someone taking that fun to the next level, and of some of those children becoming superstars. The culture doesn’t come from big players, it comes from small institutions. Such a culture also helps the population be healthy.
Also, there is no such thing as a genetic pool, of X being stronger than Y. If that was the case, many countries wouldn’t have won medals.
What do you think cricket did right and other sports did not do between 1983 and now? India won the Olympic gold in 1980 in hockey and the Cricket World Cup in 1983. Then cricket went in a different direction.
A.B. Subbaiah: A base was built for cricket. Former players were used to coach even the club teams. Infrastructure was provided in each district. We did not make any such attempt in other sports. We conducted our senior nationals, junior or sub-junior nationals in hockey but there was no proper selection committee. Earlier, people used to make the cut at the last minute. We lost 30 years from 1980 to 2010 because of not revolutionising hockey. Even when we were doing badly, we never thought we have to change the system or bring in people (coaches and staff) from Holland, Germany, or Australia. When hockey required a different level of fitness, we should have done that. We trained hard, but we never gave importance to recovery.
The government spends a lot of money on our athletes today, but the perception is that our success is despite the system, not because of it. How can we change this?
A.B. Subbaiah: Once players get into the India camp, they get the best facilities. But they are supposed to get these when they are coming up in the Under-14 or Under-15 category. Bengaluru is such a big city, yet we have only one hockey ground there. Leave aside the SAI (Sports Authority of India) ground, that’s for the national camp. We have hostels, but where is the infrastructure? Every big city has layouts but no sports complex or a sport arena or stadium.
Is a government or public sector job the only way to attract children to sports? Does it restrict the growth of a sports culture?
A.B. Subbaiah: What is the option? Sportspersons are not taken care of after their sports career, they don’t have any insurance or pension. Most of our senior players didn’t earn much even though they were champions. Many did not get a good job. They suffered health-wise. Our government should treat all top athletes as professionals and provide some money so that they can start producing new champions instead of getting new jobs. When Sreejesh retired, he was immediately made junior India coach. Such people should not go out of the system because if they get a 10-year break and come back as coaches, the game changes by then.
Tejaswin Shankar: The system is not well oiled. I disagree that jobs should be provided to Khelo India kids or those who get a medal once or twice in the junior age group. I don’t think giving them a job and financial security is the best way forward. Sports is important: it helps you find new perspective; it teaches you different life skills. But it is not a way to find a job. You should find a job through education. Getting a government job should not be the goal of playing a sport.
Listen to the conversation in The Hindu Parley podcast
A.B. Subbaiah, former goalkeeper for India, two-time Olympian, and a three-time Asian Games medallist; Tejaswin Shankar, current national record holder in high jump and India’s first Commonwealth Games medallist in the event
Source link : https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/does-india-lack-a-sporting-culture-outside-cricket/article68529308.ece
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Publish date : 2024-08-16 01:05:29
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