If I ask an average Indian what sport means to him, he'll probably picture his favourite cricketer in action. How many of us would think of Roger Federer winning a grand slam with tears of joy, Cristiano Ronaldo dribbling past defenders, Saina Nehwal's killer forehand or perhaps Lewis Hamilton speeding through the finish line? Very few indeed. It is well known that we live in a cricket dominating country but very few people realise that as a result of this, other sports are being unfairly overlooked.
In India's top flight football league called the I-league, a new Bangalore based team, Bengaluru FC were crowned champions recently in its debut season. This is an astonishing achievement given that the other established teams in the league were competing with each other for the same prize since decades! Me being a big supporter of the club went to college with great excitement to share the joy of this feat with my classmates. But most of them didn't even acknowledge this fact and I was left disappointed. Other than a few friends who gave enthusiastic responses, the rest were just busy with conversations regarding the Indian Premier League. Don't get me wrong. I, too love the game of cricket and enjoy watching the big matches but I believe other sports require more attention than they are getting from the people presently. Take the game of hockey for instance. It is our national game and we hardly follow it. Hockey has definitely taken a back seat since the olden days. The elderly folks tell me about the glory days of hockey in India, about our team dominating the Olympics during the early part of the 20th century and about Dhyan Chand who is known as the greatest ever player in the history of hockey. It is a real pity that those days are long gone. India's overall participation in Olympics 2012 was below average for a country with a population of over a billion! For this to change, all it takes is more encouragement to youngsters by the common people to pursue sports and development of training facilities by the government.
Why are sports important? The things we learn and experience while playing can be implemented in daily aspects of our lives. And when we play in the true spirit of the game, it is such a joyous experience! Tasting the sweetness of victory, having composure under pressure, tackling difficult situations with a solid game plan and maturely accepting defeat are just some of the many important things we ought to learn from sport. I'll sign of by saying this... Be a sport, support all sports. After all, the joy we get from sport is unlike anything else!
In India's top flight football league called the I-league, a new Bangalore based team, Bengaluru FC were crowned champions recently in its debut season. This is an astonishing achievement given that the other established teams in the league were competing with each other for the same prize since decades! Me being a big supporter of the club went to college with great excitement to share the joy of this feat with my classmates. But most of them didn't even acknowledge this fact and I was left disappointed. Other than a few friends who gave enthusiastic responses, the rest were just busy with conversations regarding the Indian Premier League. Don't get me wrong. I, too love the game of cricket and enjoy watching the big matches but I believe other sports require more attention than they are getting from the people presently. Take the game of hockey for instance. It is our national game and we hardly follow it. Hockey has definitely taken a back seat since the olden days. The elderly folks tell me about the glory days of hockey in India, about our team dominating the Olympics during the early part of the 20th century and about Dhyan Chand who is known as the greatest ever player in the history of hockey. It is a real pity that those days are long gone. India's overall participation in Olympics 2012 was below average for a country with a population of over a billion! For this to change, all it takes is more encouragement to youngsters by the common people to pursue sports and development of training facilities by the government.
Why are sports important? The things we learn and experience while playing can be implemented in daily aspects of our lives. And when we play in the true spirit of the game, it is such a joyous experience! Tasting the sweetness of victory, having composure under pressure, tackling difficult situations with a solid game plan and maturely accepting defeat are just some of the many important things we ought to learn from sport. I'll sign of by saying this... Be a sport, support all sports. After all, the joy we get from sport is unlike anything else!
True :)
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ReplyDeleteGood one Sharan..
ReplyDeleteMy expectations from you just reached the next level sharan. Good start:)
ReplyDeleteThanks keerti :)
DeleteYou said it! ��
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