With the euphoria of the Asian Games behind us, it’s time to reflect on India’s campaign. On the face of it, finishing fourth on the medals table—behind the three continental sporting superpowers, China, Japan and South Korea—is a creditable achievement. Being the best of the rest on the medals count was especially praiseworthy after an underwhelming opening to the quadrennial campaign. Thanks to a glut of gold from the archers, wrestlers, boxers, hockey players and cricketers, India’s tally got a late push in the second week.
It is an ideal place to start afresh, with two years to go until the Los Angeles Olympics. The stakeholders, including the sports ministry, must now identify sports where there is a bright talent pool. Even if they are not in medal-rich disciplines like swimming or cycling, spotting and backing reliable medal winners in a few sports could provide the platform to start building the next dreams. For LA, there should be additional focus on boxing, wrestling, cricket, hockey and archery, especially after the addition of compound archery, a branch where India is genuinely world-class.
On the flip side, the tepid performance in shooting and athletics is a cause for concern. Shooting is a legacy sport for India, but the shooters were mostly off-target in Nagoya. With the qualifying system for the Olympics set to begin in about a month at the World Championships, the sport’s federation, athletes, support staff and the ministry ought to come together to ensure two things: that levels do not drop and players earn quotas as soon as possible, and that systemic gaps are plugged without disrupting the whole programme.
For a country intent on hosting several multi-discipline Games over the next decade, having shiny infrastructure is just one part of the puzzle. The grander legacy of hosting such Games is in building a sustainable talent pool of athletes capable of winning medals on the biggest stages. For that to happen, planning and execution have to happen like a well-oiled machine. It’s why there is no scope for resting on laurels or reflecting on the gold and silver already bagged. The preparation for Los Angeles must begin right away.
