Moments of glory and despair at Incheon Asiad
India can look back at the Incheon Asian Games with a sense of satisfaction, though not complete pride. It picked up a few Golds less than it had in the 2010 version back home; missed out on the yellow medal in the squash single's event by squandering a match point; and, its men team in the rapid fire discipline ended up fourth due to inadequate coordination from within. Moreover, no male boxer made it to the finals. But what has been most distressing is the below-par performance of badminton stars Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu, who failed to reach the podium. Then there was the shocking episode where a Korean referee clearly played favourites and declared Indian woman boxer l Sarita Devi the loser in a semi-final bout against a pugilist playing before the home crowd. But every team has its lows and every version of the Games has reasons which leave a bitter taste in the mouth — and the Incheon event has been no exception. There is a need to look back at what went wrong and how those must be corrected in the coming months. The correction course involves both the players and the officials. Unfortunately, it has become almost routine for the authorities of the Indian Olympic Association or those from the various sports federations to blunder in their duties and worse, display insensitivity to sportspersons representing our country at international events. On most occasions, after the dust settled down, these people have got away. It is time some amount of accountability is injected into the system, so that both dedicated players and committed officials are not left disheartened. Victories and defeats are part of any sport, but callousness is not.
Meanwhile, there is no reason to be in a dark mood. Our sportspersons have, despite everything, done the country proud in many disciplines. New Golds have been bagged, as in wrestling, where Yogeshwar Dutt won for India its first yellow medal in an Asiad event; and in women's boxing, when the iconic Mary Kom finished on top of the podium. We managed to cling on to the Kabaddi Golds in both the men's and the women's events. But what triggered a truly national outburst of happiness is the Indian men's victory in hockey. India not only bagged the Gold after 16 long years at the Asiad, but it also convincingly beat arch rivals Pakistan in the process.
While the celebrations are certainly deserving, we must not forget that the road to a complete revival of hockey in the country is still long. One swallow does not make a summer, and one Gold does not mean Indian hockey is out of the woods. let us not forget that the Indian team’s journey to the final was not without completely avoidable hiccups. In the final too, we missed out on a few fairly easy chances. But now that the men's hockey team has got a direct entry to the Rio Olympics, it has enough time at its disposal to fix the problems. It would be a pity if the recent victory eventually proves to be a flash in the pan.