The Ways To Deliver The Value And Joy Of 'Sport For All' In India

First, we must continue to support our elite athletes and their journeys. This must be done wholeheartedly and not grudgingly, with a full understanding of the value they bring to us as fellow Indians. Let us be more positive, generous and give credit where it is due. The pipeline of talent is exciting and each of us can play a role in their success. Ultimately, we all benefit with their progress. Second, while elite sport sets the standard, it cannot be the be-all and end-all of sports policy and development. The net needs to be widened and systems need to be put in place, so the benefits of these elite achievements can be captured and delivered to all. In my view, while the government continues to support the elite talent, the attention of our sporting federations must be shifted to establishing junior sports systems and facilitating community sport through more accessible public facilities, equipment, coaching and competitions that anyone with an interest can access, sample and adopt. Sport is a public good and there is no reason at all for it to be a privilege of the elite athletes. Federations must work to expand the impact and reach of sports for all. Third, we need to bring together and integrate the concepts of sports and education. At one end, children must sample sports of different sorts in every school in the country either as part of their syllabus or in after-school programmes. It is a universal language and a wonderful teacher. At the other end, both elite and community sports require a talented and educated set of facilitators, coaches, support staff, administrators. The time is right to also focus on building the human resources that will support and grow our system. As much as we have seen the impact of the IIT’s, IIM’s and other institutions, sports education must be prioritised through upgrading and building the institutions of sports learning and operating them at world class levels.

This will also give sustainable second career opportunities to athletes whose careers tend to be short and risky. All in all, this could be a game-changer if executed well. Fourth, we must focus our programmes on women’s participation in sport. The 2011 census told us that we have 270 million girls under 25, comprising 20% of our population. The number would certainly have increased today. The Rio 2016 Olympics were an illustration of the fact that our girls hold the key to our country’s future, certainly in sports and - I firmly believe - in other areas as well. They undoubtedly make up a significant portion (if not all) of our influencers, doctors, teachers and mothers, among other things, and will comprise a good percentage of our future leaders as well. They are helping shape what India looks like and what being Indian means. Can we give them the best possible chance of bringing sport into their lives? Can we remove the various barriers that stand in the way of our girls playing sport, continuing to play, and achieving sporting success? A deeper understanding of societal barriers is the need of the hour, be they safety, perception, bias or otherwise; these need to be understood with sensitivity and addressed with aggression. Finally, our sporting universe will not be complete if we do not focus equal attention on those participating in Paralympic or Special Olympic disciplines, whether at the elite or competitive levels. Every Indian truly deserves a chance to enjoy the thrill of sporting achievement, regardless of inherent differences. In 2016, the Indian contingent at the Special Olympics brought back 173 medals and ranked third on the overall medal tally. In the same year, our Paralympics contingent of 19 brought back India’s best-ever haul of 4 medals.

It is heartening that we, as a country are learning to understand and appreciate the context of these performances better. Over the years, India has produced many an illustrious champion in the world of para sport, one of whom is Devendra Jhajharia. His exploits with the javelin beggar belief – not only did he land the gold medal with a world-record winning throw at the 2004 Paralympics, he went right back and trained undeterred for 12 whole years – 3 Paralympic cycles! - before his event was included at the Games again. He took the field as a 35-year-old in 2016, only to better his previous throw and bring back another gold medal, with another world record to boot! What a story! He recently became the first-ever para athlete to be named for India’s highest sporting honour, the Khel Ratna. At the same ceremony in 2018, Murlikant Petkar - a mere 46 years after becoming the first Indian Paralympic gold medallist ever - was bestowed with the first ever national honour he has received, the Padma Shri. I would like the Paralympic and Special Olympics movements to receive special attention from the government, and sustained plaudits and encouragement from all of us. I would be incredibly happy if the national sports policy takes active steps and each of our behaviours resulted in projects that would raise the water level on all these fronts. Before concluding, I would like to share a small story that sums up the way I feel.

In 2014, Kidambi Srikanth, then a young badminton player we had been supporting through GoSports Foundation for some years, shocked the badminton world by beating the legendary Lin Dan in his own den at the China Open to win that tournament. The only other Indian to have beaten “Super Dan” before this was Srikanth’s coach Pullela Gopichand. The achievement was truly exceptional, but here I would like to include an excerpt of an email received by GoSports Foundation a few days later from a well-wisher. It read: “Recently I happened to watch your boy Srikanth Kidambi beating Lin Dan. He played with a cool head and showed real international talent. His victory was simply a great achievement […]. Thank you for giving a reason to stand tall in an immigration queue with an Indian passport especially when travelling Far East. God bless. ” It fills me with pride to note that the same Srikanth has now gone on to attain the World No. 1 tag in 2018, becoming the first Indian male to achieve the top spot in his sport in the modern era. His passion for racquet sport may have been sparked by a chance encounter with freshly crowned All England Champion Gopichand, but inspiration has come full circle, and today, children training in badminton academies all over India look up to Srikanth with awe and - even better - a burning desire to emulate his feats! Who would have imagined a decade or two ago that we would have two World No. 1’s in Saina and Srikanth in a sport like badminton!We are over 1. 2 billion Indians, not all may have passports.

Not all may have to stand in immigration queues, like the well-wisher mentioned above. But every Indian deserves the chance to enjoy sport and sporting achievement. Like I said, the dots are many, they are connecting and the picture is growing in size and sophistication. In my view, we are well equipped as a people to achieve at sport. We are determined, we are talented, we make do with whatever we have got, we pick ourselves up and fight again. We are proud to be Indian. Let us think back to Murlikant Petkar. If he can, we can; you and I can. I believe that we have what it takes to become a great sporting nation. Let us, through the essays in this book, first take stock of the distance that has been covered, and then set our sights on the exciting and challenging road that still lies ahead of us. We must go out, make it happen and live that destiny. I will do my bit and hope each of you will. Thank you and Jai Hind.