India’s sporting fortunes in the global arena have taken a severe dip since the golden days of yore
Sunday’s 7-1 drubbing of the Indian hockey team at the hands of Australia in Tokyo Olympics proves that the country is miles behind in the race for a medal in the global arena, Mirabai Chanu’s silver medal in weightlifting notwithstanding. If Indian athletes manage to win a medal in the track and field events at Tokyo, it would be a miracle. Our hopes and dreams are chiefly centred on badminton and tennis players, besides boxer Mary Kom. The country which finished fourth in 1956 Melbourne Olympics football does not figure in the first six even in Asia. The Indian Soccer League has not only failed to revive the game, it has destroyed whatever interest remained among the fans. There are no prestigious football tournaments or teams anymore. Till the 1980s, we had a few reputed football teams and annual fixtures. A State like Kerala hosted seven all-India tournaments and outstation teams used to set the ground ablaze with quality games. Delhi was the venue of the world’s second oldest football tournament, the Durand Cup, and the DCM Trophy drew teams from abroad, too. Who can forget Shimla Youngs, a local team that beat the Calcutta giants?
There were no 24X7 news channels; fans across Kerala and Tamil Nadu would ring up the offices of All India Radio and newspapers late evening to know the match results. Similarly, Bombay had Rovers Cup and all street hawkers would pack their belongings by 3 pm to rush to the Cooperage Ground to catch the action. Ironically, the fall of India’s hockey started the day the country won the 1975 World Cup in Kuala Lumpur. Though India bagged the gold medal in the 1980 Moscow Olympics, it was no achievement since the US and its allies did not send their teams to the USSR. India pocketed the gold medal by beating Poland, a country which had no prowess in the game of hockey. Take a look at the number of medals won by India in the last 12 Olympic Games before bidding to host the 2036 Games. The event is hardly 15 years away and there is no possibility of the country graduating to the big league by then. Sporting events should never be held for the contractors and event managers to amass money. Sporting events are serene and sacred and not money-spinners.