Lessons from India’s Javelin gold

History was created last week when young Neeraj Chopra won the first Indian gold medal in athletics.
Gold medalist Neeraj Chopra, of India, poses during the medal ceremony for the men's javelin throw at the 2020 Olympics (Photo | AP)
Gold medalist Neeraj Chopra, of India, poses during the medal ceremony for the men's javelin throw at the 2020 Olympics (Photo | AP)

BENGALURU: History was created last week when young Neeraj Chopra won the first Indian gold medal in athletics. Never before did a nation watch javelin throw with bated breath. With the Olympic gold medal, one assumes film offers would also begin to pour in for young Chopra. Right at this moment, there must be Bollywood writers researching javelin throw, and directors convincing 50-year-old actors to play a 20-year-old.

Despite being an avid sports fan, I must confess it was the first time I was watching a Javelin Throw event. Watching the Olympics is a truly unique experience because one needs to learn the rules of the sport on the go, research the context of the match - such as the biggest players and their standings, and follow the game unfolding right in front of your eyes. It took me back to childhood, and the nostalgic rush of a new board game.

Zooming out a little, the one realisation that stuck with me was that nations that win the most medals aren’t necessarily the nations with the greatest athletes. Instead, they are the nations that have the best infrastructure for those sports. These medals have been earned by nations that pumped in money by creating ecosystems for the sport to flourish. The leader of the medals tally - Uncle Sam - spends about 55 billion dollars a year on sports. If reports from China can be believed, then our neighbour spends about a billion dollars on promoting sports. In comparison, India spends around 350 million dollars on the promotion of sports.

Dear reader, does that mean that we sit idle, and not indulge in the joy of sports? Certainly not! To the opened mind, everyday life in India throws up innumerable opportunities to pursue a sport of your choice. Take for example, boxing. If you went to school in the ’90s, you’d remember how every day at school was an impromptu boxing match. How the quick walk to class after school assembly was open season for teachers to ambush you with their fists, rulers, and sticks. Hurdling - the sport where athletes sprint and jump over obstacles - is not completely unknown to Indians either. If you have ever been chased by a parent, you’d remember jumping over chairs, tables, and parapet walls in order to sprint to safety.

On the surface, rugby might seem like a rough contact sport. But if you’ve celebrated Holi in north India, you’d know that it is an extreme form of rugby where opponents grab and pin you down on the floor. Or take race-walking - where athletes have to walk as quickly as they can to the finish line. Visit any railway station, and you’ll find swarms of people race-walking to get a seat on the incoming train. Try to break the line, and you’ll find yourself carried and crowd-surfed to the back - which in itself is no less of a spectacle than an Olympic sport.

If you’ve tried to purchase first-day-first-show tickets for a popular film in the ’90s, you’ll remember having to stretch your limbs out in artistic tangential angles to grab some tickets - a rudimentary form of artistic gymnastics! And of course, if a policeman caught you, he would unleash a mixed martial art form that combines judo, fencing, and kickboxing.

Unbeknownst to us, we were all pursuing Olympic sports in our childhood. Despite a crippling lack of resources and infrastructure, we continued to pursue sports. We were completely unaware that the invisible sixth ring in the Olympics stands for ‘suffering’!! 
(The author’s views are his own)

Related Stories

No stories found.
The New Indian Express
www.newindianexpress.com