BENGALURU: The one overriding theme on the opening day of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) Indian Sports Summit was India's potential growth trajectory in the field of sport over the next decade. The main subplot — touched by a lot of speakers including former Indian athletes Dinesh Karthik and PR Sreejesh — was understandable because there could be a universe where India, in 2035, would be a year out from hosting the Olympics.
Sreejesh, owner of two Olympic medals (2021 and 2024), couldn't stifle a smile when he said 'first, it's a honour to play the Olympics for your country. "Then think about those players who get to play the 2036 Olympics at home? I'm just going to be a normal person, sitting in a chair and cheering for my country."
It's nowhere close to being a done deal even though the International Olympic Committee (IOC) have expressed enthusiasm in India showing a lot of interest in hosting the Games. At this stage, the IOC is in dialogue with several National Olympic Committees (NOCs) as is the norm.
Can India bring the Games? While Moya Dodd, a prominent sports personality who served on the IOC's Athlete's Entourage Commission, didn't give too much away, she said the Olympics does bring with the opportunity to turbo-charge investment. "I think it's clear that having the facilities and being able to deliver the Games is always crucial for any host," Dodd, a leading voice for women's rights in sport today, said on the sidelines of the two-day event. "Leaving the voting and politics aside, it's a great opportunity to turbo-charge investment into sports infrastructure that will be able to bear fruit for many years to come. (It's about) making sure that those investments are the right ones in the right places, serving the right people and taking a holistic view of that is a big opportunity, not just in hosting rights, but also to improve the communities that will be the host communities."
The point about infrastructure is one Karthik alluded to when he was talking about how the Indian Premier League boosted infrastructure within a cricketing context. "The IPL has brought out a winning mentality in all our players," he said in a session moderated by cricketer-turned-commentator Isa Guha (RCB's director of cricket, Mo Bobat, was also part of the session). "With the influx of money and the financial benefits that a lot of the teams receive, and in turn the stakeholders, a lot of it has been put back in infrastructure. So, when infrastructure grows, eventually the quality of the sport develops as well."
Sarah Walsh, part of Dodd's panel, was unequivocal in saying that India's women sport, especially football, could potentially get a bump if the Olympics did come to these shores. "It's not all about investment," Walsh, a former Matilda, said. "If India is to get to the Olympics, that's a pathway. The infrastructure is there, the participation numbers will be there. Where that investment means India can very soon close that gap in football."
Exposure key: Sreejesh
That, though, was just one of the many arguments put forth. If India are to realise their vision of being a sports forward country, they need to focus more on grassroots. That was put forth by Sreejesh, the former hockey goalkeeper who's now the chief coach of the men's junior team. "Exposure is the key," he said during the day's last session. "Getting into the world level and performing there is the dream. What makes the Olympics unique is the mental pressure. Preparing athletes to be equipped at that level is most important.
“We have room to improve in talent identification. At the nursery level, at grassroots, there’s a lot to work on. That’s where the investment needs to go in,” he said. “If we are speaking about the 2036 Olympics, now is when we need to tap into the talent between the age groups of 12-14 years.”
From the perspective of having won two medals, the 36-year-old said now it was possible to show young talents what's possible rather than having to rely on history. "When we started playing, we always heard about the history of the sport," he said. " Now, we can realistically show young kids that we can achieve at the global stage. When I work with U-21 players, I want them to believe that they too can achieve success (at the Olympics)."
Apart from the medals, the former custodian also urged for a broader sports culture in India. "We need to introduce sports culture into our system," he said. "That's important, not just to win medals but for the overall health and well-being. The younger generation is very focused on medals, which is great but we also need to build a foundation that sustains their journey in sports."