16

Aug

Crave to be the best as consolations are illusionary

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Prabhjot Singh

A person wearing a red turban Description automatically generated

Punjab | Friday | 16 August 2024

A nation of 1.4 billion people, claiming itself to be a world economic power, ended its campaign in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games without getting anywhere near showcasing a world champion in sports.

Why we are not able to produce world champions in sports? It is a million-rupee question that the country is either reluctant or refuses to answer.

India's tally of six medals – a silver and five bronze medals – even fails to equal what the country achieved in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. In the past four years, we lost the only World champion title – Neeraj Chopra in javelin throw – we had.

India lost it to its neighbour which is torn by strife, has its economy shattered and struggling to survive.

Compared to the 117-strong squad sent by India, Pakistan’s contingent comprised only seven people, of which only two – the new Olympic champion in javelin Nadeem Ashraf and his coach – were financed by the Pakistan Sports Control Board.

 

Article and a Glance
India's performance at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games was underwhelming, with a tally of six medals, including one silver and five bronze. Despite being a nation of 1.4 billion people, India failed to produce a world champion in sports. This raises questions about the country's ability to produce top athletes.
In contrast, neighbouring Pakistan, with a much smaller population and economy, won a gold medal in javelin throw. India's performance pales in comparison to other Asian nations, such as China, Japan, and Korea, which consistently rank among the top sporting nations.
India's consolation lies in the fact that 21 of its 117 athletes returned with medals, mostly bronze. However, the country's lack of gold medals suggests a need for improvement in its sports infrastructure and training programs. India's contentment with consolatory medals raises concerns about its ambition to become a true sporting nation.

 

India has a population of 1.4 billion that is spread across states that are larger than many countries. About 200 million people live in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. Pakistan is much smaller, but is still the world's fifth most populous country, with more than 230 million people.

Geographically, India is almost four times bigger than Pakistan.

Since Independence, India has won hockey gold five teams, including the last it won from a depleted field in Moscow in 1980 while Pakistan has won three times.

India has won only two individual gold medals in the Olympic Games. The first of which came in shooting – Abhinav Bindra -  in the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and the second in the Tokyo Olympic Games through javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra.

Many other  Asian nations are far ahead of India. China shared the top spot with the USA with 40 gold medals each. Japan and Korea are other Asian superpowers in sports. They continue to be among the top eight sporting nations of the world.

Other than them, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong China, the Philippines and Indonesia had two gold medals each in the just concluded Olympic Games. Countries like Israel, Thailand and Pakistan also ended on the medals tally with a gold medal each.

India, however, draws its consolation that 21 of its 117 athletes who went to Paris came back with medals hanging around their necks. Sixteen of these medals – bronze – came from hockey and three from shooting. The only other medal won by India was a bronze in wrestling.

India feels contended with consolatory medals, generally bronze and sometimes with silver, and probably lacks the will or capability to win gold medals. As a true sporting nation, we keep gold for others and feel contended with silver and bronze.

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